Pumpkin is Personal

Pardon me while I jump on that out-of-control speeding autumn locomotive.  Yes, you know the one.  The Pumpkin Train.  There is no escaping the winter squash pandemonium, but my relationship with pumpkin goes way beyond cupcakes, candles, coffee, shampoo and body fragrance.  For me, pumpkin is not just business; it's personal.

Days before her death, Maw poses with great-grandson Clark in her pumpkin patch

I still miss those early fall telephone calls from my grandmother that heralded her pumpkin harvest.  Troops (I,cousin, Gwin Laws, aunt, Wanda Suddreth, and the four great-grandchildren: Zak, Clark, Mason and Kate) assembled at her Happy Valley home and followed Maw's instructions.  The two oldest kids rolled a wheelbarrow to the garden while Maw wielded her sharp knife to cut assorted pumpkins from their withered vines.  Gwin, Wanda and I provided muscle to move the largest squash to the wheelbarrow while the children gathered as many as they could carry. 

4-year-old Kate struggles with a large pumpkin

When the wheelbarrow groaned with a heavy load, Maw paused to pose for photos with the children before the group headed to her home to unload squash and dive into Aunt Wanda's Halloween treats. Buzzing with sugar highs and fresh fall air, each child chose a pumpkin for his/her own and happily planned carving a jack o'lantern face on the pale orange orb.

Maw Hamby with her pumpkin gatherers

Maw's Pumpkin Gatherings were an annual family event and her death, in 1994, just a few weeks before her last crop was ready for harvest, left a void in our family.  Thankfully, I inherited some of Maw's pumpkin seeds and the fruits of those seeds continue to replenish my stockpile of seeds, safely stored in a freezer.  Well, except for this year . . .

1994: The last gathering. Mason holds his baby sister, Hannah, born weeks after Maw's death

This summer, my nephew, Ben Hamby, helped plant some of Maw's pumpkin seeds at Heart & Sole.  Although she died years before his birth, Ben is familiar with stories of the Happy Valley Pumpkin Gatherings and he looked forward to harvesting his own squash in early fall.  Despite our best efforts to protect the pumpkin crop, both groundhogs and deer attacked seedlings.  Just before frost, when it was too late for the pumpkins to mature, the struggling plants finally produced several soccer ball sized fruit, but it was too late to harvest ripe pumpkins and save seeds.  It's a good thing I still have a stash of Maw's seeds in my freezer and Ben and I look forward to planting again next summer.  

Maw's pumpkins made great jack o' lanterns

At our family's Thanksgiving table, we are grateful for all those who helped shape us into the people we are and our traditional meal always includes dishes that honor special people who are no longer with us.  Our celebratory meal would be incomplete without Aunt Nancy's Vidalia onion pie, Granny's oyster dressing and Maw's pumpkin pie.  With fresh pumpkin in its chess-like filling, this recipe is decadent and as the pie bakes, its aromatic fragrance perfumes the kitchen.  Serve alone or with vanilla ice cream or sweetened whipped cream.  Enjoy and be grateful.  Very grateful. . .

Maw's (Ethel Bolick Hamby) Pumpkin Pie
 Yield:  2 pies (9 inch pie plates)
2 eggs
2 cups fresh pumpkin, cooked and pureed
3 1/4 cups sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 3/4 cups milk

Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, stirring to combine.  Pour into two prepared, unbaked pie shells and bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 15 minutes.  Lower heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 45 minutes or until center of pies are set.