This is a beautiful dish to serve as a centerpiece to your holiday celebration. A whole pumpkin is stuffed with a savory meat mixture. The recipe calls for venison, but ground beef may be substituted.
INGREDIENTS (for 8 servings):
- 1 cup wild rice
- 1 medium sugar pumpkin
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon dry mustard
- 2 tablespoons bacon grease
- 1 pound ground venison
- 1 onion, chopped
- 3 eggs, beaten
- 1 teaspoon dried sage
- 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
PREPARATION:
In a saucepan, bring 4 cups water to a boil. Add wild rice and stir. Reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 hour, or until tender.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Remove the top of the pumpkin and scoop out pulp and seeds. Prick the pumpkin interior with a fork and rub with 1 teaspoon salt and dry mustard.
Heat bacon grease in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the ground venison and onion. Slowly cook and stir until evenly brown. Remove from heat. Mix in the wild rice, remaining salt, eggs, sage and pepper. Stuff the pumpkin with the venison mixture. Place pumpkin in a shallow baking pan with 1/2 inch water.
Bake the pumpkin in the preheated oven 1 1/2 hours, or until tender. Add more water to the pan as necessary to avoid sticking.