Pumpkin Timbales, Shallot/Prosciutto Garnish; French lessons

Two pumpkin recipes in one week?

Yes, that is correct.

For my US readers who are now (or will be soon) thinking about Thanksgiving dinners and Thanksgiving menus I decided to get two of my favorite pumpkin recipes posted early.

Since we have rather a lot of pumpkins / winter squashes this year, that will be the only vegetable eaten chez nous for the foreseeable future.

I’ll try to space out the rest of the pumpkin posts.

I serve this as a first course, with the Shallot Prosciutto Garnish. but it would work equally well as a veggie side dish, in which case I would skip the garnish.

Use canned pumpkin, which is normally pure pumpkin with nothing added, or roast your own, as I do. If you use fresh, drain it and allow to cool before making the timbales.

I normally cut the entire pumpkin into large pieces, roast it, then let it drain in a colander for an hour or two before freezing it in 1 cup lots.

The timbales can be made ahead, then baked before serving or even baked ahead and served at room temperature with a dollop of Greek yogurt

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Pumpkin Timbales, Shallot/Prosciutto Garnish

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We have this as a first course but it would work for a side dish as well – but I’d probably skip the garnish for a side….

• Author: Katie Zeller
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 30 minutes
• Total Time: 40 minutes
• Yield: 2 servings 1x
• Category: Vegetable Starters

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• 1 cup (8oz, 240gr) pumpkin purée
• 2 tbs Greek or plain yogurt
• 1 egg
• nutmeg
• paprika
• Caramelized Shallots and Prosciutto:
• 3 medium shallots, sliced
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 2 slices Prosciutto or Iberian Ham, sliced

Cook Mode Prevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

• Butter 2 ramekins and line bottom with buttered parchment or waxed paper.
• Make 2 more circles and butter one side for the top.
• Put the egg in a medium bowl and whisk lightly.
• Add yogurt, nutmeg, and whisk.
• Add the pumpkin and stir well to combine.
• Spoon into ramekins. Put the paper circle, buttered side down, loosely on top.
• Put ramekins into a baking pan (I use a bread pan) with deep sides. Pour hot water into the pan coming half way up the sides of the ramekins.
• Bake in 400F (200C) oven for 30 minutes, until set – top will be firm.
• Caramelized Shallots and Prosciutto:
• Heat 2 tsp olive oil in nonstick skillet over medium-low heat and add shallots.
• Sauté for 20 minutes, until starting to brown.
• Add ham and continue to sauté until nicely browned, about 10 minutes longer.
• To finish:
• Remove timbales from oven and carefully remove ramekins from hot water.
• Remove paper. Run a knife around edges of timbales and invert onto small plates. Remove bottom paper
• Sprinkle with a bit of Paprika.
• Garnish with Caramelized Shallots and Prosciutto.

Notes

You could use bacon instead of the Prosciutto and a small onion instead of the shallots

Keywords: pumpkin, timbales

I have the answer as to whether or not all French eat hamburgers with a knife and fork.

Sometimes…..

According to my French friend, when one eats a hamburger or other sandwich at McDo’s (the French name for McDonalds) one always eats it with the hands.

When one eats a hamburger in a restaurant one uses cutlery.

Why?

Because one always uses cutlery in a restaurant.

So there…..

McDo’s is not a restaurant.

On another note…. Her grandchildren were visiting and had gone off with papy (granddad) to the parc de jeux (playground).

We started talking about the park and I asked the French name for teeter-totter.

I got a blank look.

I mimed the action and she said: Oh – seesaw!

That of course led to the usual discussion of the differences between British and American English (although both terms are used in the US).

Anyway, she said that the French name was balançoire.

I asked for the French name for swing.

She said balançoire.

I asked if everything in the parc de jeux was called balançoire? 

I received a Gallic shrug as she said ‘many’.

At that point the kids came home and the 5 yr old came running in to greet me with a perfect ‘Hello’ and the 18 month old came up to ‘faire le bise’ (exchange kisses on the cheek).

I was charmed….

And ended up with sticky cheeks.