Just a few simple steps to make homemade Pumpkin Puree in the pressure cooker

A Staple Fall Ingredient Made at Home

Instead of scooping puree out of a can, you can scoop it right out of your pumpkin and spoiler alert: it’s pretty darn simple! It’s a delightful thing to have baked pumpkin seeds to snack on, too.

Our Instant Pot finds a home on our kitchen counter once the kids head back to school and our soups and desserts slowly begin to be filled with apples, pumpkins, and squash.

20 minutes – that’s it. Let your pumpkin cook while you prepare the rest of your meal or dessert and you’ve welcomed in a recipe with no prior prep and hardly any extra dishes to clean!

• Which type of pumpkin should I use to make puree?
• The simple steps to making pumpkin puree + printable recipe card
• Don’t waste the rest of your pumpkin!
• Fall Recipes with fresh puree
• FAQ’s
• Pin for Later

Harvesting Sugar Pumpkins

Generally speaking, smaller pumpkins provide a sweeter flavor and they naturally find their way into our meals – once I found out how perfectly these fit into the instant pot there was no stopping me!

I’ll let the kids carve, paint, and display the larger ones.

These sugar pumpkins can be harvested before the first frost which lands around mid-October here in zone 4b.

When we pull from the produce itself, flavor is just one of the benefits. You’re also getting vitamins and antioxidants right from the source. Making pure pumpkin puree guarantees the health benefits don’t get lost in translation.

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Making Pumpkin Puree

Equipment

• Instant Pot/Pressure Cooker
• Food Processor

Ingredients

• 1 Pumpkin

Instructions

1. Wash you pumpkin
2. Cut off the stem and poke vent holes around the pumpkin
3. Place pumpkin in the pressure cooker
4. Cook on high for 10-20 minutes
5. Cut and scoop flesh out of the pumpkin skin
6. Mix flesh together with a fork or blend in a food processor until smooth

Tips

• Mash the puree as soon as you can without burning your fingers, the cooler the inside of the pumpkin gets, the harder it will be for you to get a smooth puree
• Poke the vent holes closer to the top of the pumpkin, that way your pumpkin won’t foam or spirt out the sides
• Use a blender or food processor to get the puree to your desired consistency

Printable Pumpkin Puree Recipe Card

Don’t let that Pumpkin go to waste!

Every part of the pumpkin has a purpose from the seeds to the skin

• Make a snack: Put the seeds in the oven with a drizzle of olive oil and salt
• Give the pumpkin back to the ground: Use the scraps for compost
• Homemade Broth: Pumpkin skins can be used in veggie broths soup flavorings

What Fall Recipes can I make with Pumpkin Puree?

If you used a pumpkin like I did you’ll have plenty of ways to put it to use after! 

I get about 4 cups of puree out of my 3 pound pumpkin. My favorite way to use this puree up is to simply throw it into recipes we already love. Just adjust the dry to wet ingredients accordingly and you can put a fall twist on just about anything. (or put in into mason jars and hand out to friends and family :))

• Pumpkin Spice Dough Bites: Watkins spices and a craving for a flavorful fall dessert led me to make these pumpkin spice bites for the first time last year – I pulled it out of the oven as the kids were getting home from school and let me tell you, it didn’t last very long!
• Add into your favorite Banana Bread or Muffin Recipe: Pumpkin adds a rich density to your favorite recipes, just adjust the wet to dry ingredient ratio
• Make a pumpkin twist on my Chipper Bars!
• Pumpkin Pancakes

Questions about Making your Own Pumpkin Puree

Pin for Later!

I can’t tell you how cozy our kitchen becomes with a pumpkin cooking on the counter. Incorporating fresh homemade pumpkin puree is my way of making our fall baking a little more intentional and a little more grounded. I’m curious to hear what you’ve been baking up this month!

Welcoming Fall

• 3 Ingredient Dry Apple Tea
• Ice Cream Bucket Pickles
• Gathering Season: Preparing your home for the Cold Months
• Peach Crisp
• Sausage and Squash Soup