Check out these simple steps for how to make pumpkin puree to use in your favorite pumpkin recipes. This post teaches you everything you need to know about homemade pumpkin puree including how to roast a pumpkin, how to puree pumpkin, how long does pumpkin puree last, and how to store it.
Ever wondered how to make pumpkin puree?
It’s like the easiest thing EVER to make and makes a huge difference in your pumpkin recipes.
In this post, I'm sharing all you need to know to make homemade pumpkin puree like a pro.
Why would you make your very own pumpkin puree when you can buy canned pumpkin, you might wonder.
Well, there’s something about the flavor and texture of fresh pumpkin puree. Homemade pumpkin puree is different than canned pumpkin. In a majorly good way. I’ve always been more pleased with my pumpkin recipes made with fresh pumpkin puree. The flavor is sweeter, more delicate, and oh so yummy. Plus, it’s super easy to make so why not give it a try, right?
Spoiler alert here: I'm talking E.A.S.Y. All you gotta do is slice open the pumpkin, clean out the seeds, and then pop it in the oven.
If you are the type of person who always has pumpkin in their house during this time of the year, making pumpkin puree is a great way to prolong the life of your pumpkin. Which means more delicious pumpkin puree recipes to try!
And speaking of pumpkin puree recipes, fresh pumpkin puree is delicious in healthy pumpkin bread, pumpkin chocolate muffins, and, of course, in pumpkin spice lattes. And, if you need more inspiration, at the end of this article I have 3 pumpkin puree recipes you can use to put your homemade pumpkin puree to the test.
Pumpkin!
HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN PUREE
If you don’t believe me when I say making pumpkin puree is super easy, I’m gonna highlight the steps for you, but first let me talk to you about pumpkin benefits and why fresh pumpkin is good for you. I’ll do it quickly so you can get to the roasting pumpkin for puree part fast!
Pumpkin Benefits:
- Pumpkin is highly nutritious;
- Pumpkin is rich in vitamin A;
- Pumpkin is packed with other vitamins including vitamin C, vitamin B2, and vitamin E;
- Pumpkin is loaded with minerals including potassium, manganese, copper, and iron;
- Pumpkin is low in calories.
Now that you know why pumpkin is good to you, it’s time to move to the how do you make pumpkin puree part.
Making pumpkin puree requires only one ingredient. That is – you guessed it – pumpkin. And a few simple steps:
- Preheat the oven;
- Slice the pumpkin;
- Scoop out the pumpkin seeds;
- Roast the pumpkin;
- Blend the pumpkin.
And there you have it - easy peasy homemade pumpkin puree.
HOW TO TELL IF A PUMPKIN IS RIPE
To become a pumpkin puree expert, you have to know how to make pumpkin puree, (which I just told you how!), how to roast pumpkin (or how to bake pumpkin), which I’ll show in a minute, and how to puree pumpkin which we will discuss in a bit. But first, I have to teach you how to tell if a pumpkin is ripe. This is super important because you want your pumpkin puree to have the perfect texture and the right amount of sweetness.
To determine if a pumpkin is ripe:
- Check the color. If the pumpkin has a uniform orange color, it’s probably ripe.
- Check the sound. Give that pumpkin of yours a lil' slap. If it sounds hollow, the pumpkin is ripe.
- Check the skin. Try to puncture the skin of the pumpkin with your fingernail. If the skin doesn’t puncture, hooray, you’ve got a ripe pumpkin.
- Check the stem. If the stem is hard, your pumpkin is ripe and ready to be transformed into pumpkin puree.
ROASTING PUMPKIN FOR PUREE
It’s time for the roasting pumpkin for puree part. Woot!
Roasting pumpkin is amazingly easy and simple. All you need to roast a pumpkin is a baking sheet and -- yep -- a pumpkin. If you want even less clean-up, you can use parchment paper or aluminum foil to protect the baking sheet. Roasting a pumpkin also adds extra depth to the flavor of the pumpkin and, in my opinion, makes it a little sweeter and richer.
Here are the easy steps for how to roast a pumpkin:
- Preheat the oven;
- Slice the pumpkin in half;
- Scoop out the seeds of the pumpkin;
- Place pumpkin halves, cut-side down, onto the baking sheet;
- Roast for 40-60 minutes.
And then — poof — you have easy roasted pumpkin. You'll know the pumpkin is perfectly roasted if a fork or knife easily pierces the outer skin.
I have to admit this is my favorite part involved in the process of making pumpkin puree because the house smells divine.
HOW TO PUREE PUMPKIN
Once you have the roasted pumpkin, it’s time to turn it into puree. Cooked pumpkin is already very soft and can be mashed, either by hand using a potato masher or fork to turn into a puree.
But I prefer to use a...
to get it as smooth as possible. There’s really no way to puree the pumpkin too much – it’s just a matter of how smooth you want to make it.
CAN YOU FREEZE PUMPKIN PUREE?
You can totally freeze pumpkin puree if you want. This is a great way to have fresh homemade pumpkin recipes longer than just the winter. To freeze pumpkin puree, just put the fresh pumpkin puree in freezer-safe containers or freezer-safe plastic bags and store in the freezer.
Frozen pumpkin puree will last for 4-5 months if stored correctly. To defrost the pumpkin puree, you can thaw overnight in the refrigerator in a bowl of cold water. Use thawed pumpkin puree within a few days for the best flavor.
Homemade puree tends to be a little more watery than the canned stuff, especially if defrosted, so you may need to reduce any additional liquid in a recipe by 2-3 tablespoons - just be aware of that if it's too runny!
HOW LONG DOES PUMPKIN PUREE LAST?
If you aren’t using your homemade pumpkin puree right away, you can store it in the fridge. Refrigerated leftover pumpkin puree will last about 4-6 days in the refrigerator if kept in an airtight container. I like to keep some on hand during the fall to add to pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin cheesecake smoothies, or to top my plain Greek yogurt. It's amazing.
3 MORE HEALTHY PUMPKIN RECIPES
I promised you pumpkin puree recipes inspo so let’s get you pumpkinspired with 3 more healthy pumpkin recipes.
FRESH PUMPKIN ICE CREAM
I talked about this Fresh Pumpkin Ice Cream a lot lately. That’s because I think it’s perfect for Fall. It’s also gluten-free, dairy-free, and vegan. Which makes it even better.
This ice cream tastes like pumpkin and pumpkin spice and it’s super easy to make (you don’t need an ice cream maker to make it) and it is prepped in 15 minutes.
PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
Another great pumpkin recipe that requires pumpkin puree is this Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins recipe. You just learned how to make pumpkin puree so make sure you learn how to make these muffins too because they are Fall perfection. And perfect for breakfast, lunch, snack, or dessert.
The Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins are healthy, ready in less than 30 minutes, and made without refined-flour or sugar.
PUMPKIN PIE OVERNIGHT OATS
These Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats are yet another pumpkin puree recipe I talked about a lot during the last couple of weeks.
The Pumpkin Pie Overnight Oats are healthy, loaded with pumpkin flavor, easy to make, and they make an amazing make-ahead breakfast.
How To Make Pumpkin Puree
Equipment
*This post may contain affiliate links for products I use often and highly recommend.
Ingredients
- 1 4-6 lb. pie pumpkin
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Slice the pumpkin in half, crosswise through the stem, and scoop out the seeds and strings. Feel free to keep the seeds for later to roast.
- Place halves, cut-side down, onto a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil.
- Roast, uncovered, for 40-60 minutes, or until tender.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool enough to handle. When cool, carefully scrape flesh from skin. Discard the skin.
- Using a food processor or blender, puree until even and smooth.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This post contains affiliate links for products I use frequently and highly recommend.
Sharon Y Oberst
Wanted to give you a little humor. Made your pumpkin puree. Very easy and turned out well. Decided to make your pumpkin ice cream. Followed everything..until.. here goes the humorous part. We decided to skip whipping the coconut milk and use the kitchen aide ice cream maker. We dumped everything in the frozen bowl, but had trouble putting the beater on, it's been a long time. After finding a utube video, getting it set up, the "custard" had already harden and paddle couldn't move. We salvaged what we could and froze it. Lesson, follow directions...that's why you have the blog not us! Thank you
Lisa Waltuch
I have shredded fresh (not cooked) pumpkin that I used for another recipe and now I want to make pumpkin bread and other recipes that call for puree with what I have left. Can I turn the shredded pumpkin into puree? how do I do that?
thank you
Teri
I must have missed it but what temp do you heat the oven to roast the pumpkin
Thanks
Dawn Manion
How long do you process the jars if you can pumpkin purée?
Jeffery McCreary
In my 70+ years, we have never tried to can pumpkin puree as the density of the puree keeps it from being processed completley in the pressure canner...yes///a pressure canner is needed to do this correctly, and if you do have a pressure canner, recommended time is at least 40 min. after 10 min. of un-restricted venting before canning at 10 lbs. of pressure....that's at regular elevation, times vary according to altitude. That being said...you can "can" pumpkin by following the regular processes of preparing pumpkin, seeding....baking, and removing the rind. At thins point on the farm we would boil the pumpkin that has been cubed into 1 inch pieces, for 10 minutes,. Then ladle them into jars....we used quart size...and filling the jars with the water used in the boiling. Hot jars...of course...then topped with steralized seals and rings. Process in the canner as noted above and turn off the heat after the allotted time, and let the canner cool down naturally...may take a half hour or more. Then carefully remove to a quiet place to cool completely undisturbed. Label, check for sealing and put away until needed. That's the way we did it for years. I tend to use pie pumpkins as the meat is sweeter, it wont take much to fill up 8 or 10 quarts
laurie
You can't safely can puree its to thick
Wanda
Can you can pumpkin in jars and store them on a shelf?
John Turner
There is a related article that discusses canning pumpkin. No, not purée, only can cubed pumpkin and only using pressure canning.
Betty Belair
I’ve had a pumpkin since Halloween. It’s been decorating my plant stand for 6 months now. It has not rotted or gotten soft. I cut open the top and the seeds seem fine. The flesh is firm and bright orange. The stringy stuff is whitish - would that be mold? Or is that what happens when it’s drying out? How could I tell if it is is still good. Or don’t chance it and throw it out?
Tereso
Just tried it, and it was an absolute success. Easy and foolproof!
Bonnie
Is there a pumpkin pie recipe for pumpkin puree?
Meg
Hi!!!!
Very nice reipe indeed. Just a question, for the oven, what temperature should we set it?
Meg Boone
Hi, Lacey. I've been making pumpkin puree for years to use in a pumpkin muffin recipe my 5 kids love. It tends to be a little more moist than canned pumpkin puree. Do you have any tips on using defrosted puree (frozen last month) for a pumpkin roll cake. Most recipes I've found call for 2/3 cup canned pumpkin. Thanks, Meg
Lacey Baier
Hi Meg! I haven't made a pumpkin roll cake before, but you can use defrosted puree just like you would fresh. Homemade puree tends to be a little more watery than the canned stuff, especially if defrosted, so you may need to reduce any additional liquid in the recipe by 2-3 tablespoons - just be aware of that if it's too runny! Good luck 🙂
Jennifer Owens
I wish to know how to make pumpkin puree when I cut pumpkin up for Halloween. How do you do without pumpkin time attached. All recipes that I see say you cook with time on and then separate time off and then mash. Please advise.
Lacey Baier
You'll want to roast it for about an hour, but use pie pumpkins instead of carving pumpkin for the best puree.
Rebecca Pearson
We've done this. We leave the jack o lantern out for about two three hours over Halloween night, then bring it inside after we're done. We don't roast it, instead we just scoop out the flesh , cut it up in chunks then put in bags to freeze. On thanksgiving day, I thaw it out and that's when I roast it with a little maple syrup or molasses just to drizzle over the it. After about a half hour, You can also microwave it until it is tender but I like the roast flavor better. I'll take it out and put it in a blender and puree it until the texture is no longer stringy. The final result will be a little runnier than canned pumpkin but it makes for a light and airier pumpkin pie, almost like cheesecake.
lisa
My 4 year old came up with the idea to make pumpkin apple pie. We tried it with Apple sauce first. Yummy!!!! So now we will do pie. Same recipe as Apple pie but use some of the pumpkin apple sauce in it.
Lacey Baier
That 4 year old of yours is a GENIUS! 🙂
Punam Paul
After your recipe, I can use pumpkin for another 2-4 days. Great! Thank you for the recipe.
Lacey Baier
You're so welcome!!
Sarah-Lee Owens-Peters
Hi there!
How long will the puree keep fresh for - plus - can you freeze it?
Many thanks!
Lacey Baier
Refrigerated leftover pumpkin puree will last about 4-6 days in the refrigerator, if kept in an airtight container. You can also freeze pumpkin puree in freezer safe containers or freezer-safe plastic bags. Frozen pumpkin puree will last for 3-4 months if stored correctly. To defrost the pumpkin puree, you can thaw overnight in the refrigerator in a bowl of cold water. Use thawed pumpkin puree within a few days for the best flavor. 🙂