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I found this article on the web, “Breaking up with Butternut,” and it got me to thinking. I’ve created an entire website dedicated to the pumpkin … I must have a relationship with this fruit. But what is it?

How do you define a relationship. In many ways it is your collection of memories about it. You know, like the time your Dad helped you write your name in the sand, or the time your grandmother shared cookies over a cup of tea. That kind of thing.

So, what are my memories of pumpkins?
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The other day I was at the grocery store and shopping for instant pudding mix. We have a new ice cream maker and I’m experimenting with different recipes, trying to perfect the the consistency and flavor that will make my husband happy. (He’s a big ice cream eater!)

Anyway, I noticed that Jello has their pumpkin spice flavor out. Usually that’s reserved for Fall, especially around Thanksgiving.

So, I wonder is there a pumpkin holiday coming up that I don’t know about?

Always pick up a pumpkin from the bottom.

Never carry it by the stem, as this might damage the pumpkin around the stem and maybe even cause it to break off.

Once you pick it up, notice how it feels. A pumpkin that has a good, solid weight is more likely to be healthy all over. However, a pumpkin that appears oddly lightweight and hollow might just be rotting on the inside.

Here’s something interesting found on the Internet: Pumpkin Wine. Three Lakes Winery in Wisconsin makes this and it sells for $9.95 a bottle. According to the marketing description, it is made only from 100% pie pumpkins (that would be sugar pumpkins, I assume). “It has been described as having qualities of a semi-sweet Chardonnay.”

Then again, I found an article by Dan and Krista Stockman of the Journal Gazette in Fort Wayne, Ind., that found it to have quite a different flavor.

We bought Three Lakes Winery’s Wine of the Pumpkin for $2.99 on clearance at a grocery store…. The label said it was wine made from pie pumpkins: We knew it was strange, but we couldn’t resist, especially at that price.

We opened it a couple of weeks ago and realized why it was on clearance. It smelled like pumpkin guts. It also tasted like pumpkin guts….

Checking the label, it said to drink fresh, that it was not meant to age, and there was no telling how old it was. Hmmmm.

So now I’m terribly curious. What does this wine taste like? Did the Stockman’s bottle taste funky because it was too old? If you have the opportunity to try this wine, please post your experience as a comment to this post.

As you may know, pumpkins are now out of season. But that doesn’t mean you have to spend a day without them in your life. Not only can you purchase canned pumpkin to make your favorite pumpkin dishes year ’round, you can buy a variety of other products, too.

I tooled around Amazon and thought I’d highlight a few here.

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Now that the holiday season is over, you might just be pumpkined out. But, in my meandering around the web, I found this recipe and just had to share it with you:

Pumpkin Tiramisu from Italian Cooking & Living magazine.

I love Tiramisu and I can’t wait to try out this pumpkin variety at my next party!

Have you ever created your idea jack-o-lantern and wished that you could keep it forever — and not just as a photograph? Well, Dennis and Tyler Szabo have just the thing for you.

The Szabos are the father and son team behind Funkins, a company that makes artificial pumpkins. “Funkins” are made out of polyurethane foam and designed to look as much like real pumpkins as possible. In fact, real pumpkins are used to make the molds.

“We try to duplicate the authenticity of the product with the paint,” Dennis Szabo told CBS4 Weekend Morning News, in Denver.

You can buy Funkins online and at various craft stores for between $5 and $20 depending on the size.

Here’s a fun recipe that makes a slightly sweet biscuit. It’s a nice alternative to the ordinary biscuit, and makes a very tasty snack. The original recipe called for pecans, but I’ve always used walnuts.

2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/ cup butter or margarine, cut into pieces
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
2/3 cup pumpkin pureé
1/3 cup half-and-half

Preheat oven to 400°F. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder and spices. Cut butter into mixture until it looks like small peas. Stir in nuts. In a glass measuring cup, combine pumpkin and half-and-half. Stir into flour mixture. Dough should be stiff. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead several times. If the dough is too wet to handle (which it often is), add more flour. But be careful not to add too much so that the biscuits end up coated with flour! Pat dough out until it is 1/2 inch thick. Cut out with 2-inch cutter or glass with 2-inch diameter opening. Place biscuits onto lightly greased baking sheet, about one inch apart. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden brown. Makes about 20 biscuits.

If you’ve decided to forgo the canned pumpkin this year and give fresh pumpkin a try, here are some tips for choosing one that won’t let you down.

First, you want to make sure that you’re not buying a Halloween pumpkin. You want the smaller, darker orange sugar pumpkin for cooking.

Then you want to check the rind and make sure it is firm. If the rind is soft, this is a sign of either immaturity or improper storage.

Also look at the color quality of the skin. If it is shiny, the pumpkin may be underripe or waxed (which could mask bad quality).

To avoid mold or bacteria growth, look for a pumpkin with the remnant of a dried-out stem still attached. Give it a little push — if it moves, move on. If it holds firm, you should be O.K.

Once you get your selected pumpkin home, store in a cool spot with good air circulation — not the refrigerator. It should stay good for up to a month.

Of course, if you’re looking for other types of winter squash, these tips work just as well.