WARNING: Don't Leave the Pumpkin On the Porch

Pumpkin Banana Smoothie makes a healthy high-energy
breakfast.  More ideas for pumpkin all-day below.

What’s a great pizza topper, sandwich filler, lasagna layer and can cost as little at $0.29/pound? Weighing anywhere from a few ounces to over a ton this gourd makes  lip-smacking seasonal treats. But did you know that it’s one of the most affordable ways to stay healthy this fall? Here are three reasons why you need to bring that pumpkin in from the front porch:

1) Pumpkins are packed with Vitamins, Minerals and immune boosting antioxidants like alpha-carotene and beta-carotene, which make it orange, protect our eyes, maintain our skin, and aid in cancer prevention. It’s got high amounts of essential Vitamins and minerals A, B, C and E, and magnesium, calcium, potassium and iron.

2) Pumpkins are High in fiber;one cup of pumpkin meat contains 3 grams of dietary fiber, which the body uses to control blood sugar, lower bad cholesterol and aid in weight loss. AND it keeps you regular J

3) Pumpkin is Low in calories (and fat):pumpkin is naturally low in fat and calories (½ cup contains only 40 calories), making pumpkin a healthy snack (and probably a healthier pie option too -  now, I'm not trying to say pumpkin pie is healthy, but a better choice).

So we all know pumpkin makes a great pie, here are a few ideas for using that power packed pumpkin any time of the day:

• BREAKFAST: Pumpkin Banana Smoothie
quick tasty and easy. Just need ice, yogurt, milk, pureed pumpkin, frozen banana, pumpkin spice and sweetener like stevia, raw agave or maple syrup and you will a yumtastic healthy morning.
• LUNCH: Pumpkin Soup
cumin, coriander and cinnamon, are the key spices to a pumpkin soup where the only other ingredients are a can of pumpkin, vegetable broth, garlic and onion  and pair it with a Pumpkin Salad Toss spinach and roasted pumpkin together, then add a few pumpkin seeds, dried cranberries and goat cheese.
• DINNER: Roasted Pumpkin
cube the pumpkin and toss with olive oil, garlic, parsley and coarse salt and roast in the oven or pumpkin Lasagna It’s your same lasagna recipe, just Mix the ricotta or cottage cheese with pumpkin puree then a layer of the pumpkin mixture
• SNACK: Toasted Pumpkin Seeds –
don’t throw them out when you carve your pumpkin; just spray a pan with cooking spray, spread a thin layer of pumpkin seeds and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar or sea salt and toast…keep a close eye because they cook quickly
• DESSERT: Pumpkin Pudding
an easy way to fortify vanilla pudding mix, just add a can of pumpkin, a teaspoon of pumpkin spice and cut the milk in half and you’ve got a seasonal treat that’s a much healthier version of pudding. 

This is just the tip of the iceberg of the things you can do with pumpkin so take

advantage of this cheap and easy way to make almost any dish more healthy and tasty! 

But, remember when you buy prepared pumpkin products not all product are created
equally healthy.   Just because it's a pumpkin donut or pumpkin ice cream does NOT mean 
it's healthy. Otherwise, Bon a petit!