Pumpkin Varieties for Autumn Pies

A traditional American crop since before western culture knew of the New World, pumpkins spawned another culinary tradition when the Europeans began to cultivate this robust orange plant: Pumpkin pies in autumn. After being harvested from September through November, millions of pumpkins are baked into sweet, silky, and smooth-textured pies traditionally eaten in fall, though with the advent of cold storage and later, canning, pumpkin pies would become available year-round. Those wanting to bake their own may also wish to grow the pumpkins in their home gardens, and for that purpose, these common varietals are excellent for making pie.

The first, "Amish pie," is aptly named for both its heritage and greatest use. These large pumpkins can weigh an astonishing one hundred pounds, or about twenty times as much as a newborn baby! Historically cultivated by Amish and Mennonite farmers, this varietal gained increasing popularity with other growers who prized its large size, firm skin, and succulent, sweet flesh. Now, "Amish pie" pumpkins are considered a heirloom variety, and prized as much for their size as the history behind them.

Another pumpkin variety, "Connecticut Field," originally came from its namesake New England state -- and can reach an astonishing one hundred and fifty pounds! Probably cultivated originally by Connecticut's native American tribes, such as the , , and , Connecticut Field pumpkins likely achieved their robust size after European cultivation techniques were introduced to produce greater sized fruit. In Italy thousands of years before, the same method had been applied to tomatoes, enlarging the fruiting bodies of that plant from grape-sized spheres to the large baseball-sized tomatoes of today.

The final varietal, "Atlantic Giant," comes from a lineage of competition pumpkin growing. Thus, "Atlantic Giant" pumpkins often weigh several hundred pounds, containing enough succulent flesh to make dozens and dozens of pumpkin pies! Originally cultivated in New England, Atlantic Giant pumpkins are the result of constant competitive growing and breeding, which in time produced the huge fruits many seeds bear today.

What to do after the many hard hours of work put into the home garden? Bake a pumpkin pie, of course! Here is a simple and tasty recipe.

Easy Pumpkin Pie

1 lb. Fresh pumpkin
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 whole pie crust
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit, mix all ingredients, then pour into pie crust. Bake for fifteen minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake forty minutes longer, or until inserted knife comes out clean. Cool, serve, and enjoy the sweet taste of traditional pumpkin pie!!