Pumpkin Creme Brulee

This cute little sugar pumpkin served as one of my Halloween decorations:

But Halloween is over and we're in the mood for Pumpkin Creme Brulee.

Start by cutting off the top of pumpkin and then quartering:

Scoop out all of the seeds (save the seeds and see recipe below) and fibers, place on a baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for about an hour:

Peel off the skin, cut into chunks and whirl in a food processor.  If the pumpkin is too thick add a little water until you have a puree:

That's all there is to it! So simple and so much better than you will ever find in a can.

To make the creme brulee:
In a medium saucepan, combine 2 1/2 cups heavy cream, 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup white sugar and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.  Bring to a simmer and remove from the heat.  In a medium bowl whisk 7 egg yolks until they are thick and light yellow.  Slowly add about 1/2 cup of the hot cream mixture into the eggs, whisking constantly.  Then add this mixture back into the cream and continue whisking.  Stir in the pumpkin, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves.  Strain through a very fine sieve, discarding any pumpkin pulp.  This step is very important if you want a smooth creme brulee, rather than a pumpkin custard.
Place creme brulee ramekins or custard cups in a large metal roasting pan.  Divide the mixture between the cups.  Add hot water to the roasting pan until it reaches halfway up the ramekins.
Bake the custards until they are set in the center, about 45 minutes.  Remove from the pan and refrigerate for at least four hours or overnight.
Sprinkle each custard with sugar and torch until the sugar melts and caramelizes. You can buy cute little kitchen torches for this job, but John prefers his industrial torch:

Pumpkin Seeds or Pepitas:

Rinse the seeds and remove as much of the stringy fibers as possible.  Spread out on a cookie sheet and let dry overnight.  Toss with a little olive oil, sprinkle with salt and bake at 250 degrees for about an hour.