Nothing says fall like pumpkin, but sometimes it’s nice to enjoy their flavor outside of harvest season. Dehydrating pumpkin purée into pumpkin powder allows you to add pumpkin flavor to baked goods without adding a lot of moisture. Homemade pumpkin flour, nutritious, flavorful and a great addition to baked goods, including paleo and gluten-free recipes.
Pumpkin should be known as a superfood. Full of vitamin A, fiber, antioxidants and plenty of B complex vitamins, it’s a home garden hero. It’s useful for so many recipes, from sweet to savory. Easy to cook with, and tasty to enjoy, pumpkin is a culinary masterpiece.
Have you ever had a recipe that called for 1 1/2 cups of pumpkin? Sure, we all have. The problem is those cans of pumpkin you get from the store are 2 cups. What do you do with the extra 1/2 cup? You could add the extra to your recipe, and maybe throw it off a bit. You could store in the back of the fridge, with all the hopes and dreams that you will remember that it’s there before it goes bad, or you can dehydrate it.
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When you are dehydrating canned pumpkin, you are making what’s known as “pumpkin powder.” This makes the pumpkin pantry storage-friendly and will last 5 years in a cool, dry place. The best part is that you can also dehydrate FRESH pumpkin from your garden, saving you space in the freezer.
Dehydrating canned pumpkin (or fresh) is pretty easy, and you can do it without special equipment. I used my Excalibur dehydrator for this, but you can easily do this in your oven as well.
How to Dehydrate Canned Pumpkin
- Spread pumpkin puree on a dehydrator sheet, or parchment paper
- Place in the dehydrator on 125 degrees F for 6-8 hours, or an oven set at lowest possible temp for 5-6 hours
- After 3 hours, flip the pieces over so that all parts will get dried out
- When fully dry, the pumpkin will be stiff and “crack” when you try to bend it
- Place in a coffee grinder and grind to a powder (some chunks are just fine here)
- Store in a tightly covered container for up to 5 years.
How to Dehydrate Fresh Pumpkin
- Cut the pumpkin in half, along the equator.
- Scoop out the seeds, saving them for roasting.
- Place the pumpkin cut side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 45-60 minutes at 400 degrees F, until a fork can easily pierce the flesh.
- Allow cooling for 10 minutes.
- Scoop the pumpkin flesh out into a bowl.
- Spread on the dehydrator sheet, or new parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Place in the dehydrator on 125 degrees F for 6-8 hours, or an oven set at lowest possible temp for 5-6 hours
- After 3 hours, flip the pieces over so that all parts will get dried out
- When fully dry, the pumpkin will be stiff and “crack” when you try to bend it
- Place in a coffee grinder and grind to a powder (some chunks are just fine here)
- Store in a tightly covered container for up to 5 years.
How to Rehydrate Pumpkin Powder
Rehydrating pumpkin powder is simple and just requires a little water and time. Add 1 cup of water to every 1/4 cup of dehydrated pumpkin powder and allow it to sit for 20-30 minutes. Give it a quick stir and then use it as you would regular pumpkin purée.
How to Use Pumpkin Powder (Pumpkin Flour)
While you can simply rehydrate pumpkin powder and turn it back into pumpkin purée for your favorite recipes, dehydrated pumpkin has some extra benefits. Generally, pumpkin cookies made with pumpkin purée turn out cakey because of all the extra moisture. Try adding a bit of dehydrated pumpkin flour to a standard chocolate chip cookie recipe for pumpkin flavor and a crisp cookie.
Pumpkin flour is actually a product being marketed to home cooks as a gluten-free and paleo flour substitute. It’s used in this Pumpkin and Oats Smoothie as well as these Pumpkin Blueberry Pancakes. Try adding pumpkin powder to just about anything as a spice.
- Use as a spice in pies
- Add to pumpkin spice smoothies or coffee
- Sprinkle over pasta
- Mix in with your favorite granola recipe
Have you ever dehydrated canned pumpkin or fresh pumpkin? What would you use it for?
