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Dinner in a Pumpkin

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Don't worry too much about getting the amounts of the ingredients exactly right in this recipe because the amount you need will depend on the size of the pumpkin and the ratio of flesh to skin. But the ration won't matter as long as you have enough of the cream mixture to cover all of the bread.

Approximately 15 slices of baguette (about half of a large loaf)
1 pumpkin, approximately 6 inches in diameter
1/2 teaspoon salt, plus more to sprinkle inside the pumpkin
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup vegetable stock
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 cups grated Gruyere (about 4 ounces)
2 cup grated Emmental (about 3 ounces)
1 teaspoon minced fresh sage leaves
olive oil for brushing

Put a rack in the bottom third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Brush the bottom of a small casserole dish with oil.

Arrange the baguette slices in a single layer on a cookie sheet and bake them in the oven until they are firm, about 5 minutes.

Cut the top off the pumpkin and set it aside. Clean the seeds and stringy fibers out of the pumpkin and off of the top. Reserve the seeds for roasting, if you like.

In a measuring cup or small bowl, whisk together the cream, vegetable stock, nutmeg, 1/2 teaspoon of salt, and pepper. Mix the cheeses and sage together in a separate measuring cup or a small bowl.

Sprinkle a bit of salt inside the pumpkin. Breaking the bread into small pieces if necessary, cover the bottom of the inside of the pumpkin with a layer of bread. Cover completely with a layer of cheese. Pour enough of the cream mixture over the bread and cheese to completely saturate the bread. Continue to layer the ingredients in that same order until you have used all -- or most -- of the bread and cheese. When you pour the last bit of cream mixture on, make sure that it comes high enough to soak through all of the bread, but don't let it run over the side. I(f you have any extra bread and cheese, make up a few cheese toasts. Because you can never have enough bread and cheese. . . right?)

Put the top on the pumpkin and rub the outside with a bit of olive oil. Bake until the pumpkin is tender when pierced with a knife, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Jobs for children: I find that cutting the pumpkin is heavy knife work not suited for children. But they can brush oil into the pan and onto the outside of the pumpkin, scoop out seeds, grate cheese and nutmeg, grind pepper, and layer the bread and cheese inside the pumpkin.


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