14 Uses For Canned Pumpkin That Aren't Pie, Bread, Or Bars

Alas, it's finally fall. While for some of you that means drinking your weight in pumpkin spice lattes, for me it means all sorts of pumpkin baked goods, which of course include a myriad of variations on pumpkin pies, pumpkin bread, and pumpkin bars. Though this ingredient may not necessarily be for everyone, it is, no hyperbole, one of the most exciting things of the season for me. I love the stuff.

Even for those who feel the same way, however, what happens when the holidays are through, and we're all pumpkined out, yet we still have a bunch of unopened (or even opened) pumpkin? As it turns out, canned pumpkin — to be clear, I'm talking about pure pumpkin, not pumpkin pie mix or other adulterated versions — is an incredibly versatile ingredient. It works not only in sweet preparations, but also in many savory ones, so much so that I would not only argue that it's worth having in your cupboard throughout the autumn, but also all year long. Unopened containers can potentially last for years, thus are always there for that weeknight when you have little else in the house for dinner and no energy to run to the store. Without further ado, let's take a look at some of the best ways to use canned pumpkin that go far beyond the usual suspects.

Perhaps the most obvious option for an abundance of canned pumpkin is pumpkin soup, a simple but satisfying and comforting autumnal dish that is essentially made from a combination of canned pumpkin and broth or stock, though creative renditions can also integrate a variety of herbs and spices. In addition, a touch of heavy cream (or coconut milk, or yogurt) always amps up the decadence factor.

This type of pumpkin soup is fantastic when used as an elevated starter on a holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas — don't forget to garnish the bowls with some toasted pumpkin seeds — but one does not need a special occasion to break it out. In fact, it can work great as a simple wintry weekend lunch or easy weeknight dinner. For the latter, to make it a bit more substantial, some good ideas include adding in shredded rotisserie chicken, cooked chickpeas, or steamed potatoes.

My absolute favorite way to use leftover canned pumpkin is to incorporate it into a simple weeknight curry. After sautéing some vegetables and chicken pieces, I'll add a generous amount of spice — I prefer to make my own blend, but pre-mixed curry powder or garam masala is totally fine too. After that cooks for a minute, I make a sauce with the pumpkin and coconut milk, which adds a lovely sweetness that balances out the aforementioned spices.

If I don't have coconut milk or if the sauce is too thick, I'll also cut it with some broth, water, or even milk. (It takes a little practice to get the proportions right, but is also relatively flexible.) I then simmer it until the ingredients are done to my liking and plate it atop a pile of rice. Though hardly authentic in the realm of Indian cuisine, this dish is nonetheless both easy and delicious. Serve it alongside an off-dry Riesling or malty beer, and weeknight dinners just got a lot more fun.

When you are craving a hearty bowl of pasta, but you can't eat, don't like, or simply don't have tomatoes on hand, canned pumpkin can serve as the base for a surprisingly adaptable and delicious alternative pasta sauce. The puréed squash can replace the tomato in a standard recipe, simmered in a similar way for anywhere from 30 minutes to several hours, mixed with Italian herbs and spices, ground meat or meatballs — pork is a particularly good match — or anything else that you regularly add to tomato sauce.

The one caveat to this is that pumpkin has less water than tomato, so it typically needs to be cut with liquid (preferably broth, but straight water will do in a pinch) before simmering. Perhaps counterintuitively, if no sugar is added, the end result is not a sweet sauce but a rich and savory one, adding to the comfort food factor that a dish of pasta already offers. Also, mixing in a touch of cream or brown butter can further intensify the autumnal vibes.

Most stews — or, in other words, meat that's cooked slowly in liquid until it is fork-tender — need a finishing thickener to take the dish to the next level. Why not, then, use canned pumpkin? Not only does this add subtle, sweet, and savory notes, but it's a healthy and easy addition. Plus, if you're dealing with a picky eater — kid or adult — stirring in some mashed pumpkin, which is virtually undetectable in the final dish, is a great way to incorporate a serving of vegetables into an otherwise meaty meal.

To be honest, a similar dish that uses chunks of whole pumpkin (or, more practically, butternut squash) — to the extent that some pieces of the squash are dissolved as a thickener while others are left whole — is always going to hit a bit harder than just using the puréed, canned stuff. But hey, if canned is all you have on hand, it will still work well and is sure to also be tasty.

Pumpkin pancakes — and, to a lesser extent, waffles — are a diner classic at this point, especially from that slightly upscale neighborhood breakfast joint. They're also incredibly easy to make at home. Just take a small amount of pumpkin right from the can (around 4 tablespoons per cup of flour) and mix it into your favorite plain batter recipe. Because the pumpkin adds a little sweetness, if the recipe you use is sugary, it's probably also worth easing back on that ingredient so the end result isn't too cloying.

While there is some moisture present in the pumpkin, in my experience, it's not so much that it requires reducing the milk (or liquid) by a large amount. As such, start with slightly less liquid, but then adjust the batter consistency to match your desired texture. Of course, adding warm pumpkin pie spices — such as cinnamon or ginger — is also highly advisable here, which will combine wonderfully with the pumpkin and maple syrup topping to create an absolutely joyous plate.

As with the aforementioned curry and stew ideas, canned pumpkin can also be used as a thickener and flavoring agent for a wide variety of chili recipes. Because these dishes tend to be overtly spicy, adding the slightly sweet pumpkin in this case offers a beautiful balance to the chili pepper, rounding out the dish and perhaps helping those who are more averse to aggressive spice enjoy it even more.

As I write this, I'm also thinking about how mad some people in Texas get over the idea of adding beans to chili, and I shudder to think what they might say about adding pumpkin instead (or in addition to). That said, authenticity is not the goal here. Rather, we're looking at efficient and delicious ways to use up canned pumpkin, and the fact of the matter is that adding it to chili — whether traditionally correct or not — is still awfully delicious.

Searching online, there are many, many cookie options with pumpkin as a flavor ingredient, including pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin snickerdoodles, oatmeal pumpkin cookies, and more. And they come in all types, from soft and cakey to chewy and even crunchy.

That said, one of the downsides of mixing pumpkin right from the can into cookies is that the final product can become too fluffy, almost to the point where its texture makes it seem more like a mini cake than a cookie. There is, however, a neat trick to mitigate this, often described as blotting the pumpkin.

To try this, spread the canned pumpkin into a thin layer on a plate that's been coated with a few layers of paper towel, then top the pumpkin with another couple of layers of paper towel. Let it sit for a few minutes, and a significant amount of the pumpkin's moisture will have been absorbed by the towels. And, believe it or not, the towels will pull away easily from the pumpkin after this process, with very little sticking (something I found hard to believe until I tried it). While this trick might not remove all the cakiness of a pumpkin cookie, it does work incredibly well to create a more cookie-like texture that's tender, chewy, and satisfying.

One of the easier ideas on the list, this is a great way to get vegetables into your breakfast, perhaps giving you a clear and present advantage over other humans at the start of the day. It couldn't be simpler, really: just add 2 to 4 tablespoons of canned pumpkin to the basic overnight oats recipe (for 1 cup of oats). To amp this up even more, adding a bit of pumpkin pie spice (or warm spices like cinnamon, ginger, or clove) is, of course, also highly recommended. And while added sugar isn't necessary, a touch of maple syrup or honey will also enhance enjoyment.

The end result here is more textural than flavorful. The pumpkin gives the oats a creamier texture and even makes them a bit more filling, but doesn't drastically change the flavor. There is a kiss of sweetness, yes, but otherwise it's not hugely noticeable. As such, it's easy to start small here with a smaller amount of pumpkin to see how you like it, then increase the amount from there.

While the concept of pumpkin cheesecake is not exactly a groundbreaking idea, it's not necessarily a go-to for home cooks like pumpkin pie is — but perhaps it should be. Though cheesecake can be a little fussy to make, mainly because of the crust and the sometimes-requested water baths, pulling a filling together that's mostly cream cheese, sugar, and pumpkin is actually quite simple and makes a deliciously decadent dessert, especially when lightly but notably flavored with pumpkin and pumpkin pie spices. Why not try it instead of the standard pumpkin pie this Thanksgiving? Your relatives will surely be impressed.

If that sounds like too much work, of course, you can always just head to the nearest Cheesecake Factory, where both pumpkin cheesecake and pumpkin pecan cheesecake are likely to appear on the seasonal menu every autumn. While perhaps not as satisfying as making a beautiful cheesecake yourself, this option sure would be easy.

As maybe one of the easiest ideas on this list, a very simple option is to add some canned pumpkin to a potato mash or purée. Similar to mixing sweet potatoes and regular potatoes, this will provide a touch of sweetness alongside the already hearty, savory aspects of the potatoes. In particular, and to help offset that sweetness, I'd also recommend using savory herbs, such as rosemary or sage, as well as some brown butter, the latter to add a nutty quality that will round out the dish.

Because the pumpkin has a bit of liquid in it, I would also suggest mixing it into the potatoes before adding any additional liquid to achieve the proper texture. As mentioned in the cookie section above, another option is to blot the pumpkin to remove some of the moisture. Or, even better for this dish, spread the canned pumpkin on a foil- or parchment-covered baking sheet, roast it in the oven to elevate the pumpkin flavor and remove moisture, then add it to the potatoes. (This technique can be used in many of the other preparations here as well.)

Though perhaps not the easiest dish to make, and somewhat intimidating for first-timers — although I would argue that making risotto is easier than cheftestants make it look on TV — if you're already making risotto, adding pumpkin is a breeze. Simply mix in a bit of the squash purée toward the end of the process, perhaps with the last ladle or two of broth, and you've got yourself a lovely twist on an iconic Italian dish. As with the aforementioned potato purée, this is also a good candidate for the pre-roasting method, which concentrates the pumpkin flavor and reduces moisture.

While this idea will work with a classic, straightforward risotto, another great idea is to incorporate your pumpkin into a mushroom risotto. The sweetness of the pumpkin will offset the earthy, umami flavor of the mushrooms incredibly well, and these flavors will combine to become the essence of autumn in a bowl.

The beauty of realizing you can incorporate canned pumpkin in a variety of casserole recipes is that it opens up a whole new category of ideas and uses. From a simple side dish where canned pumpkin is mixed with herbs and spices and baked, to much more complex dishes that add pumpkin to meat, cheese, pasta, rice, grains, and many other ingredients, there is truly a plethora of intriguing options.

Do you have a great baked mac and cheese recipe, for example? Add pumpkin to the base, and all of a sudden, you're eating elevated pumpkin mac. How about shepherd's pie? Replace the mash with pumpkin (or, see above for a combination). Or, mix some pumpkin into the meat sauce. What about a classic sage dressing or stuffing, always welcome in the fall? Add a bit of pumpkin as a thickener and flavor enhancer, and the autumn-friendly flavors will become even more prominent. While those are just a few ideas, the possibilities here really are endless.

Sweet pumpkin dip is a super-easy, no-bake dessert recipe from just a few simple ingredients. Essentially, it is a combination of cream cheese, pumpkin, a bit of sugar, and a bit of spice, all blended together, great with apple slices, graham crackers, ginger snaps, or other simple cookies. It's a great way to serve a crowd, and for a last-minute or otherwise time-starved dessert context.

Though that is the most common type of pumpkin dip, there are also other dips that can be made with canned pumpkin. One idea would be to make a pumpkin mousse, similar to a chocolate mousse. While maybe it isn't technically a dip, it certainly has a similar consistency.

Another idea — in this case, for a savory dip — is to add pumpkin to your favorite hummus recipe; here, the natural sweetness of the pumpkin nicely offsets the sharpness of the lemon juice and garlic in the classic Mediterranean dish. While not authentic by any means, of course, pumpkin works surprisingly well as an add-in.

If, at some point this season, you are completely sick of pumpkin and simply refuse to look at anything pumpkin-related on your human plate, yet you remain overwhelmingly pumpkin-rich in the pantry, the good news is that it is actually a great way to show your furry best friend you care. Though it also contains many vitamins and minerals, pumpkin is particularly high in fiber, which can help support a dog's digestion and bowel function. In fact, the primary ingredient in the gastrointestinal and gland treats I buy for my dog is pumpkin.

In addition, many dogs enjoy pumpkin treats, especially if paired with peanut butter. When you make homemade ones, you'll know that they're chock-full of only the best, simple ingredients. Of course, every dog is different, and you should check with your vet if you have any questions or concerns about your dog's diet or overall health.