Carving A Jack-O-Lantern Pumpkin
For fancier designs and easy pumpkin carving, you may want to invest in a few safer and more exact implements, such as tiny saws and an awl . Scoop the seeds and pulp out of the pumpkin with a spoon. Start by pulling out as much of the pulp and seeds as you can by hand and put them in a large bowl. Then, scrape the inside walls of the pumpkin with any large stiff spoon, ice cream scoop, or scraper from a carving kit. Keep scooping out the pulp until the pumpkin is about 1–2 inches (2.5–5.1 cm) thick.
We think making Christmas crafts as a group is a great way to enhance holiday cheer. All of these projects are simple enough for any beginner crafter to try, which makes them fun for loved ones of all ages. Turn a set of stockings into an advent calendar with special treats as you count down to Christmas.
Get a taste of Italy via these seasoned pumpkin seeds which are coated in fennel seed, dried oregano, and grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. Looking for a few delicious roasted pumpkin seed recipes? Roast the pumpkin seeds in the oven for up to 45 minutes. Samhain was celebrated on Nov. 1 in ancient Britain and Ireland, marking the end of summer and the beginning of the new year.
Start by washing the seeds thoroughly; then, grind them in a food processor until they are smooth. That’s right, early jack-o-lanterns were carved from root vegetables. Unbeknownst to the ancient Celts, their fall tradition of Samhain and of keeping evil spirits at bay would evolve throughout the centuries. Samhain morphed into Halloween, and the myth of Stingy Jack and the use of jack-o’-lanterns to scare off his evil spirit arose. But unlike the spooky-yet-cute jack-o’-lanterns we’re familiar with today, the earliest jack-o’-lanterns appeared quite macabre. With crudely-cut eyes and mouths, their faces seemed fully capable of truly frightening both the living and Kids the dead.
Try cutting a hole in the bottom of the pumpkin instead. That way, you can just set a candle or light on the cut-out base and put the pumpkin on top instead of reaching inside to light it. One option is to go online and find a design idea or stencil for your pumpkin. Pinterest is full of nearly endless ideas for designs, and there are plenty of other websites with great ideas, too. You can also buy a book of Jack O'Lantern stencils, or simply use tracing paper to trace a design out of one of your child's favorite books and tape it to your pumpkin.