Stuffed Pumpkin

Stuffed vegetables are my personal comfort food — not just for the taste itself, but for the memories they bring back of the best thing from my 

INGREDIENTS

50 g TVP (soy protein granules)
Marinade for the TVP:

• 2 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tbsp Crema di Balsamico

Filling:

• 100 g millet (preferably fine-grain)
• 1 Hokkaido pumpkin (about 1.5 kg)
• 150 g onion
• 3 tbsp oil
• 50 g tomato paste
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• ⅔ tsp ground coriander seeds
• ⅓ tsp ground juniper berries
• ⅓ tsp ground nutmeg
• ⅔ tsp lemon pepper (or regular black pepper)
• ½ tsp cumin or caraway
• 1 tbsp agave syrup (or another sugar-based sweetener)
• 30 g oat flour

METHOD

Prepare the TVP:
Cook the granules in about 400 ml of water with soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and Crema di Balsamico.
Be careful with the water — too much and the flavor becomes diluted; too little and it may burn. TVP absorbs liquid strongly, so aim for just enough to keep it moist without leaving excess.
Set aside to cool.

Cook the millet in plenty of water until almost overcooked.
Drain it thoroughly through a sieve and let it cool.

Drain the TVP well as well.

Chop the onions finely, then sauté them in oil until golden brown.

Combine the onion, millet, TVP, tomato paste, soy sauce, and spices. Mix thoroughly.

Prepare the pumpkin:
Cut off the top “lid.”
Scoop out the seeds and pulp, leaving about 1–1.5 cm of flesh inside — if the walls are too thick, the pumpkin won’t bake through properly.

Stuff the pumpkin with the filling, cover with the cut-off top, and place it in a preheated oven at 200°C for about 40 minutes.
Check doneness with a skewer or toothpick — the pumpkin should be soft inside.

VARIATIONS

You can use the same filling to stuff bell peppers or other vegetables.

NOTES

• If you don’t have Worcestershire sauce, add more soy sauce or a spoonful of Marmite.
• Instead of Crema di Balsamico, you can use fruit syrup, agave syrup, fruit juice, or, as a last resort, sugar.
• It’s best to prepare the TVP a day ahead so it can marinate longer. Make a larger batch — it keeps well and can replace meat in many dishes.
• You can make oat flour yourself by grinding rolled oats in a coffee grinder (many grinders have two bowls — one for coffee, one for other products).
  Just make sure to clean it thoroughly, especially after grinding aromatic spices.
• If you use sugar, grind it into powdered sugar — it will mix more evenly with the millet and TVP. Sugar is needed for Maillard reactions, which deepen flavor.

SERVING

Serve hot, warm, or cold — for example, with tomato or mushroom sauce.

I’ll probably write more one day about this phenomenon that connects Poland and Germany — the Kleingarten, or ogródki działkowe (allotment gardens).
I even have photos of century-old gardens in Hanover that are still functioning today.
It’s a topic worthy of an epic poem — something that personally helped me survive childhood, both physically and mentally.

And it’s probably the reason why (aside from depression, of course) I rarely get sick.
As Dr. Stachowska — a biochemist, professor of medical sciences, and one of Poland’s leading lifestyle medicine experts — explained, it’s also one of the key factors behind longevity in the so-called Blue Zones.

Because an allotment garden— a small plot where you grow your own vegetables and fruit — gives you two wonderful things:

1. Physical activity.
   Moderate but regular effort — gardening — is far better for long-term health and longevity than intense gym or running workouts.

2. Microbiome training.
   Playing in the soil, eating vegetables straight from the ground, or fruit from the bush or tree — these strengthen our immune system and enrich our microbiome.

    

It’s one of my professional dreams to cook in a place that has its own garden, its own small piece of land, where we could grow, at the very least, our own herbs. 🌱