Peter, peter, pumpkin eater

That squirrel (we'll call him Peter) was at it again. I think that was the start of it. I had bought a pumpkin to decorate for my sister-in-law's baby shower and I had it for less than a week before the brazen little beast found it and started nibbling away. He ate my chives last summer, he's taken to eating my wooden rocker chair, and now--the pumpkin. Peter isn't afraid of anything. I'll go out there and shoo him away, and I can almost hear the expletives in his little brain, "yeah ok lady...." My dog Jake really wants to get him, and often will wait at the sliding glass door just hoping for a chance. One of these days, I might "forget" to leave the glass closed and let Jake take care of business.

But anyway, back to the pumpkin. He ate a half-dollar sized surface nibble out of the pumpkin and was working his way onto the stem. That stupid pumpkin had cost me $10 and believe me when I say I wasn't about to let the squirrel have it! That's when I decided I would cut off the piece he had eaten and cook up the rest. No one warned me what I was in for. Two and a half hours later, as I hunched over the floor (since I had to move there since after the first hour at the counter, I knew there had to be a better plan) I was still cutting and peeling and dicing. Above is a photo of the cutting mid-stage.

I consoled myself with the delicous pumpkin seeds I would soon have and woke up Sunday to make them bright and early. I was still in some endo pain, but figured what better than pumpkin seeds to make it all better? I love them salty, but not super salty so I decided a teaspoon of brown sugar mixed with 3/4 tsp of salt might do the trick. It did. They came out wonderful and I enjoyed eating every bite of my pumpkin seed breakfast.

Until...the nausea began. I kid you not, pumpkin seeds can do some damage to the esophagus. I didn't know a cyst had ruptured making me ill. Had I known this, I think pumpkin seeds would have been the last thing I'd have eaten. Despite this, maybe I'll try my recipe again sometime. They were good going down at least.

I decided I'd lay off the pumpkin for a few days and the cubed pieces sat in my fridge. Last night, when I realized I needed something for lunch today I decided I wou.ld make the Pumpkin Leek soup (http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/pumpkin-leek-soup-10000001664015/index.html)   I'd had my eye on for a while. I had to read the recipe carefully since I have never cooked leeks before since I probably would have cut up the green part. Apparently you use the white and light green parts. The soup made a tasty lunch and I think those little leek pieces have a little bit of a spicy kick.

As exciting as this pumpkin adventure has been, I think next time I might just sacrifice my pumpkin to Peter and use the can.