Cooking with Lionbridge

Southwest Buffalo Stuffed Pumpkin

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We're delighted to share this insight into one of the many interesting recipes in the Taste of Lionbridge cookbook, from Monica Oliveira in our Boulder, Colorado office. Let's hear it for Southwest Buffalo Stuffed Pumpkin (recipe below) - just in time for the US Thanksgiving holiday...

Looking back in my life, I see that I have been a food localizer since I was a little girl. My father was in the Brazilian Navy and about every three years we moved to a different place in the country or abroad. Our favorite dishes had a different look and taste in many places we lived, as many times some of the ingredients were not available and we had to find a suitable substitute.

This recipe is my contribution to Thanksgiving dinner in the Southwest of the United States. For my first Thanksgiving in Boulder, Colorado, almost 10 years ago, I decided to localize this festive dinner. I researched the spices and food of the region and the great influence of the Mexican culinary in the region. At the end of dinner, the Buffalo Stuffed Pumpkin got the most compliments of all dishes by family and friends. It became a must in all Thanksgiving meals after that.

My inspiration came from a Brazilian dish, the Shrimp-Stuffed Pumpkin. My grandmother used to make that for Sunday dinners and it was one of my favorites. It was shrimp cooked in a hearty fresh tomato with a touch of coconut sauce replacing the seeds in this special kind of pumpkin called Kobasha in the United States. Then baked until the sauce boiled over and ran down the sides of the pumpkin creating this glazed shiny look; beautiful and delicious!

The buffalo is the animal of the plains, although today cattle farms are all over the Colorado plains. If you feel weird eating buffalo, you can substitute it with beef and it will still be a southwestern dish. The chili mixed with cumin and oregano is a widely loved spice in this area, whether you have Mexican heritage or not. The pumpkin is the fall vegetable and keeps the spirit of the season and the holiday. The zesty chili taste, seasoning the mild buffalo meat, made the perfect combination for the lightly sweet taste of the pumpkin. Separated by a thin wall of mild cheese, the buffalo only meets the pumpkin after the first bite, when the fusion of the tastes happens for our delight.

Southwest Buffalo Stuffed Pumpkin

Ingredients:

• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup diced onion
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 1 pound ground buffalo meat
• 1-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons chili powder mix (chili, cumin, oregano)
• 3 cups diced tomatoes (large pieces)
• 1/3 cup diced yellow bell pepper (large pieces)
• 1/3 cup diced red bell pepper (large pieces)
• 1/3 cup diced green bell pepper (large pieces)
• 1/4 chopped cilantro
• 2-1/2 pounds Kobasha pumpkin (dark green skin)
• 8 ounces whipped cream cheese

Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit

1. In a big frying pan, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and sauté until the onion is clear (about 5 minutes).
2. Add the minced garlic and sauté for 2 more minutes
3. Add the buffalo meat and fried until it is evenly brown, breaking the lumps into small chunks.
4. Add the salt and chili mix and mix it well. Cover the pan and let it simmer for about 20 minutes in medium low heat.
5. Add the diced tomatoes bell peppers and cilantro; mix well and cover. Simmer on medium-low heat for 20 more minutes.
6. Cut the top of the pumpkin and take all the seeds, scraping the internal surface of the pumpkin.
7. Spread evenly the cream cheese on the pumpkin internal wall of the pumpkin.
8. Place the pumpkin in a baking dish or pan and pour the saucy prepared meat into the pumpkin and close it with the top.
9. Bake the stuffed pumpkin in medium heat for 45-60 minutes, until the pumpkin is soft (when the teeth of the fork sink easily into the pumpkin flesh).
10. Remove from the oven and serve while still hot.