Preloved’s Guide to Uses for Leftover Pumpkin

Before thinking about binning those delectable pumpkin insides after carving, or throwing out your carved pumpkins once Halloween’s over, why not get creative and transform your pumpkins into delicious treats, beauty treatments and decorative delights! Here’s our Preloved guide to uses for your lovely leftover pumpkin!

Face Mask

The leftover pumpkin pulp which is scooped out of the inside can be transformed into a face mask! You’ll need one small pumpkin, ½ table spoon of organic honey and ½ tea spoon of milk; this can be whole, skim or soy. Combine the leftover pumpkin, honey and milk in a bowl and mix well. Apply the facemask (avoiding eyes), rinse well after 20 minutes, and enjoy soft exfoliated skin!

Flower Pot

Think about how many perfectly good leftover pumpkins get thrown away just because Halloween is over! Well this year, you can transform your carved pumpkin into a beautiful flower pot! They’re ideal for both indoor and outdoor use and can easily add a fresh lease of life to any garden or living room. (Turn the pumpkin around to conceal your Halloween creation for extra post-Halloween charm.)

Birdfeeder

Cutting used pumpkins in half and filling with bird seed reduces waste and enables you to care for the birds at the time! These pumpkin bird feeders are incredibly easy to make, and all you’ll need is your leftover pumpkin, some bird seed and a length of string. Simply make small holes in the sides of your pumpkin and thread the string through. To make your bird feeder more stable, insert two tubes into the sides of the pumpkin and attach the string to those.

Leftover Pumpkin Prosciutto Rigatoni

There’s nothing quite like a hearty pumpkin pasta to fend off that Autumn chill. Such a tasty dish doesn’t have to come with loads of calories either! For this recipe, you’ll need to turn your leftover pumpkin into pumpkin puree before starting. You can do this by cutting it into small chunks and boiling it until tender. To make your pasta you’ll need:

• 1 cup of rigatoni
• 1/2 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 packet of prosciutto (chopped)
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 3/4 cup of double cream
• 2 tablespoons chopped sage
• 1/2 cup chicken stock
• 3 teaspoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

To make this tasty dish, boil the rigatoni according to the instructions on the packet. Heat two teaspoons of olive oil and add the prosciutto ham. Fry for about five minutes until brown and crisp and remove from the pan. Heat the other spoon of olive oil and add onion, pumpkin, cream, chicken stock and nutmeg. Simmer for about five minutes and stir often. Add the sage and parmesan, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the pasta and prosciutto and garnish with the remaining parmesan. Delicious!

Why not check out our other pumpkin and autumn hacks here. We’d love to hear your tips over on our Facebook,  Twitter and Instagram!

Images sourced from Pinterest