Sweet roasted pumpkin was one of my favourite fall desserts as a child as it’s quite traditional in my country. This recipe is slightly different to the one my mum makes as I have upgraded it a bit by adding some extra ingredients but still keeping it simple. If you have never tried sweet roasted pumpkin, you need to do so asap as you are missing out! Imagine this: delicious, sweet pumpkin roasting in maple syrup and rum sauce, topped with crunchy nuts! Easy, healthy and vegan dessert!
Obviously you need to find a good sweet pumpkin for this to be a success. You can also use butternut squash, they tend to be sweeter sometimes. In my recipe post for Simple Pumpkin Oat energy bars I have some tips that you might find useful about choosing your pumpkin. Also, check out the recipe for Mediterranean Quinoa stuffed butternut squash for some deseeding tips.
The great thing about this recipe is that it doesn’t require a lot of preparation and it’s super nutritious and naturally sweet. Instead of maple syrup you can also use honey. I throw in some cinnamon and cloves into the mix as they compliment the pumpkin perfectly. I also like adding rum in the sauce as it adds a very nice aroma to the pumpkin but you can skip it if you wish. The pumpkin absorbs just a little bit from the rum’s flavour, most of it actually evaporates during the roasting, so you are not actually consuming most of it.
Finally just before the pumpkin is done roasting, I add some nuts and raisins for an additional nutty flavour and crunchiness! To be honest you can cook the pumpkin simply with maple syrup or honey only, this is how my mum makes it but I like to make it extra special by adding the rest of the ingredients. You can have this as a dessert but I also find that it is perfect for breakfast as well.
Ingredients
- 500-600 g (18 - 21 ounces) pumpkin or 1 medium-large butternut squash
- 1/2 cup rum (optional)
- 1/3 cup maple syrup/ honey
- 6-7 cloves (optional)
- 1 tbsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 cup nuts and dried fruits (about 200g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 200ºC / 390ºF.
- Peel and chop the pumpkin into large cubes and place in a large baking dish (removing the seeds as well).
- Add the rest of the ingredients, except for the nuts and raisins. Mix everything well.
- Bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes or until your pumpkin is almost done.
- Add the nuts and raisins and bake for another 10 minutes.
- Try it and serve with extra maple syrup/ honey if it's not sweet enough by any chance, it depends on how sweet the pumpkin is.
Notes
The nuts and dried fruits are added later to avoid burning them.
Here are a few other pumpkin desserts you might also like:
- My delicious, moist pumpkin cookies: No bake Pumpkin Cream Chocolate cookies
- Super easy pumpkin energy bars that are great for breakfast or as a snack: Simple Pumpkin oat energy bars
- Great Pumpkin chocolate fudge, using nutritious ingredients only from Nadia’s Healthy Kitchen: Pumpkin Chocolate Fudge
- Delicious Pumpkin rice pudding from Little Sunny Kitchen: Spiced Pumpkin Rice Pudding
