Everyone has a few of those tiny decorative pumpkins around the holidays,  they usually decorate the table for a while and then go soft and get thrown out.

But you can actually use those tasty little pumpkins as a gorgeous desert item.

A major part of homesteading or a sustainable lifestyle is minimizing waste. Waste not – want not, as the saying goes.

Start by gutting those little cuties. Don’t forget to save the seeds, they can make a cute and tasty garnish for your dish. Set them aside to bake once the pies are done.

Mix up a batch of your favorite pumpkin pie. The one I used here is actually a Gluten-free, Dairy-free recipie that I created.

Gluten-free Dairy-free Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

2 cups pureed pumpkin

1/2 cup quinoa milk (or other dairy-free milk. We would use almond milk, but we have one kiddo who is intolerant of almonds)

1/2 cup honey or maple syrup

2 eggs

1 Tbsp gluten-free flour

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp nutmeg or mace

1/2 tsp cinnamon (if it’s not not on your naughty list. )

1/2 tsp ginger

Mix all of the ingredients together. Blend well.

Pour into your cleaned out tiny pumpkins. Leave some space for pie filling to expand. Don’t fill the pumpkins all the way to the brim.

And bake at 400 degrees for about an hour or until knife comes out clean. Baking time will vary with pumpkin size. Pie filling will expand during the cooking process, but will sink back during the cooling time.

Once the pies are done, toss the seeds with some cloves and nutmeg, or cinnamon, and roast until golden.

Garnish with cooked pumpkin tops and toasted pumpkin seeds.

This recipe filled 6 small pumpkins perfectly.

The kids loved these, from my four year old picky eater, to my 15 year old picky eater. That’s a winner!

And they were so healthy, that I let the kids eat them for breakfast.