A Simple, Yet Elegant Shade of Cream...Sitting on a Pumpkin!

White pumpkins have been around for a while, but what was once a curiosity at farmers markets is now making the scene at larger groceries and pumpkin patches.
Perfect for decorating, white pumpkins are rapidly becoming a favorite for Halloween. Sporting a white skin, this unusual pumpkin provides a natural "ghostly" color for painting scary faces.

 Although white on the exterior, surprisingly, this white pumpkin's flesh is orange and has excellent flavor.

 Joining classic orange pumpkins, the festive white pumpkin offers an attractive contrast when used as an ornamental decoration especially for fall holidays. Use the same as squash.

 Let your harvest decor transcend the season with just a few changes. By using white pumpkins, these make perfect "fillers" for Christmas seasonal arrangements. Simply replace your harvest-colored foliage with rich evergreens, magnolia leaves and cedar branches, along with red berry vines. For a simplistic, yet elegant look, a neutral colored pumpkin on top of an urn is one classic look.

These tiny cream colored pumpkins were painted with the wedding couple's initials and used in our fall floral display as an introduction to the ceremony! The arrangement was simple to create by using ornamental cabbages, white chrysanthemums and placing them in a rustic antique farm tool......

Another creative way we used pumpkins for this ceremony is by incorporating them as serving bowls. We served hot pumpkin- flavored soup served in  hollowed out miniature pumpkins. Most any kind of dish can be presented in a small pumpkin or decorative gourd that's been hollowed out and cleaned thoroughly.

You can even line the aisle that you'll be walking down with attractive medium-sized pumpkins. Give your flower girl a basket of pretty autumn leaves to adorn your path with before you take your walk down the aisle!

It's a cinch to cut perfectly round holes in pumpkins and winter squashes with a plunger-type apple corer. Use orange pumpkins, yellow squash and other gray or white varieties and mix and match punched-out holes.

Paring our collection of silver and pewter candlesticks in the dining room entrance, among all of the crystal and creamy white pumpkin gourds, proved to be not only elegant, but dramatic against the mist blue of our walls!
We referred to this as "dining in the Windsor Room" for our 8:00 dinner party!

Pumpkins make delicious custard, pies, bars, cookies, muffins, soup and various tasty pumpkin-flavored desserts. This one has been a particular Maine House favorite for late night talks before bedtime.

Pumpkin White Hot Chocolate
3 cups whole milk
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 ounces white chocolate, roughly chopped
A pinch of salt
heavy whipping cream
Heat the milk, pumpkin puree, and spices in a sauce pan until it just starts to simmer and remove from heat. Add the chocolate, vanilla, and pinch of salt, and stir until it has melted. Pour into mugs and top with whipped cream and garnish with cinnamon.

October gave a party;

The leaves by hundreds came -

The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,

And leaves of every name.

The Sunshine spread a carpet,

And everything was grand,

Miss Weather led the dancing,

Professor Wind the band.~

George Cooper, "October's Party"