5

papersynthesis

november

papersynthesis ~ handmade paper items & prints ~ florence, italy ~ Lisa McGarry

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1. Prepare the pumpkin: Fill a medium pot with water & place over
a high flame. Peel & chop the pumpkin into 1-inch chunks, tossing them in as they’re chopped. Cook until tender (time about twenty minutes once the water has started boiling). Mash well, then set in a fine sieve to drain completely.

2. Make the batter: Once the pumpkin has drained, place it in a medium bowl. Quickly stir the dry ingredients before mixing into the pumpkin. Add the eggs & incorporate well; the
batter should become fairly thick.
3. Fry: Heat some oil over a moderate flame. Place heaped spoonfuls of batter in the pan, leaving some breathing space between each. Without disturbing them, fry until
set & the undersides are golden; flip
& cook the other side.
The fritters are best served right out of the pan, sprinkled with brown sugar & cinnamon. [See Laurie Colwin’s note about gingerbread to determine how many servings you can hope to get.]

Ingredients for Pumpkin Fritters

2 cups cooked pumpkin (~ 2.2 lbs/1 kg uncooked) ½ cup flour + 1 Tbsp brown sugar + 2 tsp baking powder +
½ tsp salt + 1 tsp (total) cinnamon, cardamom &/or nutmeg
2 eggs Olive oil for frying

What we like to do with our Halloween pumpkin

Shorter days, dull skies & rain are the downsides of November but, slowly, I am beginning to remember the many good things that autumn brings. Pumpkin fritters are certainly one of these (not to mention roasted pumpkin seeds, pumpkin soup & pumpkin bread) . . .

It is possible to find the bright orange pumpkins that we would traditionally buy at a pumpkin patch in the US but, more often than not, we buy an entire zucca that we can turn into all sorts of pumpkin-y treats. I love their pale, natural color, and the rustic, ‘ruffled’ shape.

Pumpkin fritters have become a favorite (see recipe at right); I will often prepare twice as much raw pumpkin so that I can make soup as well. I first got the idea to use pumpkin as a soup ingredient from Falling Cloudberries (by my friend Tessa Kiros). . .her mother always included pumpkin in her soups. It lends an almost meaty heartiness to the broth, and makes a delightful alternative to carrots. Click HERE for my soup recipe with pumpkin.

Florence remained dry on the anniver-
sary of the 1966 flood yesterday, but Genoa is in our prayers; sadly, at least 6 people were lost in flash floods.