On Fri, 24 Sep 2004 00:27:08 GMT, Holley wrote:

There are jack-o-lantern pumpkins and pie pumpkins. What is the
difference botanically?

TIA
Holley


There are varieties of pumpkins that are better for jack-o-lanterns.
Generally, the larger ones are best. The "original" jack-o-lantern
was actually a turnip and there's an interesting story about it
(Google to find it!). I make jack-o-lanterns every year, set them on
the front porch, and cook the pumpkin the next day. It takes a few
hours to cook out most of the liquid. After cooling, I store the pulp
in Ziploc bags and freeze them. Near Thanksgiving I make several pies
for my neighbors. They have a much better taste than the canned
pumpkin but not quite as orange in color. My favorite is roasted
pumpkin seeds and these are usually gone at the end of day that
pumpkins are carved.