A tale of 3 pumpkins (or squashes)

[bbohanon]

So for this years pumpkin batch (both pumpkin ale and pumpkin pies), I went on the hunt for a new style of pumpkin/squash to use. I found 3 candidates that I am going to experiment with.

The local pumpkin guy told me that for the best pies and sweetness, use either a Candy Roaster pumpkin, A Blue Hubbard or a Yellow or Green Cushaw.
I got all 3.

Pics are below of these pumpkins/squashes, but I plan on making 3 different pumpkin pies this weekend (due to the crappy weather) with the pulp each variation of these as well as my modified Thunderstruck pumpkin ale with the Candy Roaster pulp.

I am curious to see the result from each of these as I have always used canned pumpkin or a NC white mountain pumpkin in my pumpkin ale batches and pumpkin pies in the past but wanted to venture into something new this year.

If nothing else, it provides a delicious way to pass the time as I watch the football games and it pours rain outside.

I will post the weekends pics of the pies and beer once I get the pies cooked up and beer out of the fermenter.

The Candy Roaster before cutting it up:

Candy Roaster Cut up and gutted before baking:

Candy Roaster Goodness:

Blue Hubbard Squash and the Yellow Cushaw( the green football looking one is the BHubbard. The Yellow Striped one is the Cushaw)

 

[bbohanon]

So made pies and beer this weekend..
The pies were awesome and we shall see how the beer is in about 2 months when its first tapped.

Pics below of the pies and the beer brewing..
Used the old school 5 gallon batch equipment which consists of a Hot Rod, smaller pots and the mash cooler as it was pouring rain outside so I did not want to be tracking mud through the house (plus there were some really good FB games on as well!).

I actually mash my pumpkin with some Amalayse in a pot seperate from the mash and dump it in as the final sparge out water which helps keep the clogging from occuring.

Candy Roaster Pies:

Cushaw Pie:

Heating up sparge water with pumpkin mashing on the side:

Cooler(using my quick disconnects from my 10Gal HERMS system with my igloo...:fro

Grain Bag:

Mashed in: