Pumpkin Pie Flavored Vodka!

From a Press Release on Yahoo:

Modern Spirits Serves Up Pumpkin Pie Vodka

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 27, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Modern Spirits announced today the release of its first seasonal flavor, Pumpkin Pie Artisan Vodka. Made with real pumpkin puree and spices, Modern Spirits Pumpkin Pie closely follows the family's traditional (yet secret) baked pumpkin pie recipe. The delicately flavored vodka is ideal for dessert cocktails and for pairing with braised short ribs, roasted quail and pecan pie.

``Fall is one our favorite seasons,'' says Melkon Khosrovian, Modern Spirits co-founder and vodka maker. ``We thought it fitting to create a truly American flavor to celebrate the holidays.''

Modern Spirits Pumpkin Pie, the only pumpkin-related spirit on the market, will be available October 1 in most states that carry the company's product line. Suggested retail price for Pumpkin Pie is $25.99 for 375ml bottles and $43.99 for 750ml bottles.

New Dremel Pumpkin Carving Kit Claims to make pumpkin carving better and easier

From a Yahoo PR:

Dremel(R) Pumpkin Carving Kit Helps Halloween Enthusiasts Create Gourd-eous Pumpkin Masterpieces

MOUNT PROSPECT, Ill., Aug. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- In years past, pumpkin carvers had few decisions to make beyond whether square or circle eyes looked better on the gourd they carefully picked from the pumpkin patch. Thanks to Dremel®, the trusted name in high-speed rotary tool technology, crafters and families can take creative pumpkin carving to a whole new level this Halloween with the Dremel Pumpkin Carving Kit. The kit allows carvers to quickly create intricate designs, such as a haunted house or a pirate, on the surface of a pumpkin after it has been cut open and cleaned out, giving the gourd a sophisticated, iridescent appearance compared to jack-o-lanterns of the past.

See the whole Yahoo PR here.

You can purchase the Dremel Pumpkin Carving Kit in the Everything Pumpkin Store

Click here for resources on Free Pumpkin Carving Patterns
Click here for info on How to Preserve a Carved Pumpkin

Pumpkin Festivals

As much as I'd love to be able to list all the news about upcoming pumpkin festivals across the states, it's just too large an undertaking and this blog format doesn't really allow for it. However, if you are looking for local pumpkin festivals, you wont need to look far. Many towns and cities are already advertising local upcoming pumpkin festivals, and information can be found by searching the websites of local newspapers or just doing a search for "pumpkin festival" in the Yahoo News section, which yields many results this time of year.

As the stores are beginning stock their shelves with Halloween items, so too are the pumpkin farms and orchards swinging open their gates to allow the overeager masses to surge forward and begin collecting pumpkins from this year's harvest.

Unfortunately, due to inclement weather these past few months, there is bound to pumpkin shortages in several areas, so if you regularly make a habit of pumpkin picking, you might not want to wait until the last minute.

Taken from an article from The Half Moon Bay Review--

Pumpkin extract might someday supplement insulin, study says

By David F. Smydra Jr.--[ david@hmbreview.com ]

Many diabetics are used to seeing red when they prick a finger to test their blood sugar. A new study suggests they could soon be seeing some orange, too.

According to a study published in the July issue of the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, pumpkin extract - also known as Cucurbita ficifolia extract - potentially has a "beneficial effect in diabetic individuals which (sic) is exerted through its hypoglycemic, antioxidant and cytoprotective action."

The study concluded that pumpkin extract boosted plasma insulin levels of lab rats infected with Type 1 diabetes by as much as 36 percent. Those same rats also developed just 8 percent fewer insulin-positive (or beta) cells than rats not infected with diabetes.

This means that the lab rats that were fed pumpkin extract experienced higher levels of insulin, both in their bloodstream and in their pancreas, than diabetic rats not treated with pumpkin extract. The extract was obtained from the pumpkin's inner fruit (excluding seeds) and boiled down to a powder that constituted 7 percent of the pumpkin's original weight.

People with diabetes do not generate enough insulin, which is a hormone that transforms sugar and other starches into energy for the body's use. Therefore, many diabetics need regular insulin doses, either through injections or from an automatic pump.

But as with all medications, insulin dosages can be tiresome and expensive, even when covered by insurance.

The study was led by researchers Tao Xia of East China Normal University and Qin Wang of Shanghai Jiaotong University in Shanghai, China. Xia and Wang noted in the study's introduction that pumpkins are "one of the most widely used vegetable remedies for the treatment of diabetes mellitus" in Asia. Their study endeavored to find scientific support for the folksy belief.

On this side of the Pacific Ocean, almost 21 million Americans have diabetes, according to the American Diabetes Association.

B.J. Burns of Bianchi Flowers in Pescadero has been an insulin-dependent Type 1 diabetic since he was 19. Now 62, Burns has for years earned acclaim as a successful area pumpkin farmer.

He was delighted to hear this week that those two facts might enjoy a future connection.

"That would be very nice," Burns said when asked if he would welcome oral supplements instead of the insulin pump he has worn for the past decade. "Especially for kids who get (diabetes), they have to take the shots every day. It would be a lot easier."

As for whether the new study will influence the output and efforts of local pumpkin farmers, Burns didn't want to wager a guess.

"It's hard to say," he said. "It could do wonders for the industry. Then again it could be against the industry.

"To be honest with you, the pumpkin market doesn't change much," he said.

Jack Olsen, a fellow diabetic and San Mateo County Farm Bureau executive administrator, agreed. Olsen, who gives himself six insulin injections per day, said that pumpkins are not a really high-value crop.

"But agriculture is basic supply-and-demand at its best," he said.

Bobby Flay Shares Pumpkin Recipes

Chef Bobby Flay is most known for his BBQ and Southwestern cooking techniques, but he recently shared a few pumpkin recipes that sound delicious. The full article and recipes can be found here, but here is the recipe for pumpkin bread to get you started:

Pumpkin Bread
Yields: 1 9-inch loaf

2 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon salt
1 15 ounce can pumpkin puree
1 cup sugar
1 stick unsalted butter, melted and cooled
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup toasted walnuts or pecans or cranberries, coarsely chopped

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9-inch loaf pan with nonstick baking spray. Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt in a large bowl.
2. Whisk together pumpkin puree, sugar, butter, eggs and vanilla in separate large bowl until smooth. Add the flour mixture to the pumpkin mixture and mix until just combined. Fold in the walnuts.
3. Scrape the mixture into the prepared pan and bake in the oven until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before unmolding onto a wire rack to cool for 1 hour.

New Arizona pumpkin record

As reported in The Arizona Public:
An Ahwatukee Foothills man broke the state's record for growing the heaviest pumpkin with a whopping 469-pound pumpkin.

Bennett Buchsieb shattered the previous record of 385 pounds. The giant pumpkin was weighed Saturday morning at his home.

The results are according to the Web site backyardgardener.com, which tracks such things.

This year will mark Buchsieb's fourth year of growing pumpkins and he hopes to see others pick up the hobby for some friendly competition.

A great website for pumpkin info

The following is taken from the website http://www.pumpkin-patch.com/ . Please visit the site for a wealth of info about pumpkins, including info about growing pumpkins, which is relevant right now since if you're planning to grow pumpkins, now is the time to do it.

"Pumpkins are believed to have originated in North America. Seeds from related plants have been found in Mexico dating back to 7000 to 5500 B.C. References to pumpkins date back many centuries. The name pumpkin originated from the Greek word for "large melon" which is "pepon." "Pepon" was changed by the French into "pompon." The English changed "pompon" to "Pumpion."

Native American Indians used pumpkin as a staple in their diets centuries before the pilgrims landed. They also dried strips of pumpkin and wove them into mats. Indians would also roast long strips of pumpkin on the open fire and eat them. When white settlers arrived, they saw the pumpkins grown by the Indians and pumpkin soon became a staple in their diets.

As today, early settlers used them in a wide variety of recipes from desserts to stews and soups. The origin of pumpkin pie is thought to have occurred when the colonists sliced off the pumpkin top, removed the seeds, and then filled it with milk, spices and honey. The pumpkin was then baked in the hot ashes of a dying fire. The pumpkin was then baked in the hot ashes of a fire.

As today, early settlers used them in a wide variety of recipes from desserts to stews and soups. The origin of pumpkin pie is thought to have occurred when the colonists sliced off the pumpkin top, removed the seeds, and then filled it with milk, spices and honey. The pumpkin was then baked in the hot ashes of a dying fire..."