WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.200 --> 00:00:00.760 Get value. 2 00:00:00.800 --> 00:00:03.120 You can't argue with at Tesco with their amazing club 3 00:00:03.160 --> 00:00:06.160 card prices. Serve up something special with our finest meal 4 00:00:06.240 --> 00:00:08.880 deal for two starring one main, two sides and dessert 5 00:00:08.880 --> 00:00:12.039 for only sixteen euro like succulent board, be approved IRUs 6 00:00:12.039 --> 00:00:14.880 Shined the Strip loin steaks with peppercorn butter or delicious 7 00:00:14.880 --> 00:00:18.359 irous chicken parmesanma served with creamy potato gretam and a 8 00:00:18.480 --> 00:00:22.160 mix of rainbow root vegetables. And enjoy Goozillionaire or Solder 9 00:00:22.239 --> 00:00:25.440 caramel cheesecake. Can't argue with that shop in store or 10 00:00:25.440 --> 00:00:29.120 online Tesco. Every little helps available, the most doores prices, 11 00:00:29.199 --> 00:00:29.879 very inn express. 12 00:00:30.440 --> 00:00:32.560 Oh hey, it's your friend who's at the mall and 13 00:00:32.600 --> 00:00:36.000 texts you photos of jeans that cannot possibly be the 14 00:00:36.079 --> 00:00:38.280 new thing. Please tell me highwayted with no pockets isn't 15 00:00:38.320 --> 00:00:40.880 a thing? Please all you work back with another episode 16 00:00:41.000 --> 00:00:44.799 of Oologies. We're just leaning into this season. Curunchy leaves, 17 00:00:45.039 --> 00:00:49.640 wood smoke scarves, glowy little lights in the darkness. This 18 00:00:49.719 --> 00:00:54.079 episode Pumpkins. If Pumpkins were a person, I'd be down 19 00:00:54.119 --> 00:00:56.920 to be the roommate. They seemed chill, they seem friendly, 20 00:00:56.960 --> 00:00:59.399 they seem down for a good time, like they would 21 00:00:59.439 --> 00:01:02.119 come in lunch with a pep talk when you need it. 22 00:01:02.280 --> 00:01:05.640 Pumpkins seem like totally not assholes. But before we get 23 00:01:05.640 --> 00:01:07.760 into it, let me thank all the folks at patreon 24 00:01:07.799 --> 00:01:10.319 dot com slash ologies for supporting the podcast. Thanks to 25 00:01:10.319 --> 00:01:14.239 everyone wearing ologies merch from ologiesmerch dot com. Thanks to 26 00:01:14.239 --> 00:01:16.640 all the folks of course who are just destroying that 27 00:01:16.840 --> 00:01:20.040 subscribe button and rating the show and keeping it up 28 00:01:20.040 --> 00:01:22.319 in the charts. And of course you brave souls who 29 00:01:22.319 --> 00:01:24.239 submit a review because you know I care, and I 30 00:01:24.280 --> 00:01:26.719 pick out a new one each week, such as for example, 31 00:01:27.040 --> 00:01:30.680 Alchemist nineteen eighty seven twenty thirteen says dad Ward is 32 00:01:30.719 --> 00:01:33.280 like your long lost best friend from kindergarten, you know, 33 00:01:33.319 --> 00:01:34.959 the one you would sneak off to the playground with 34 00:01:35.040 --> 00:01:38.239 and turnover rocks by the pond. I have rebelled against 35 00:01:38.239 --> 00:01:41.040 the podcast culture since it's very inception, but it's just 36 00:01:41.159 --> 00:01:44.920 not possible to not enjoy this podcast. Alchemists, thank you 37 00:01:44.959 --> 00:01:47.560 so much. Let's get into it. Let's turn over the 38 00:01:47.680 --> 00:01:51.159 rock that is cue crepetology. Okay, what in the David S. 39 00:01:51.239 --> 00:01:55.799 Pumpkins is this word? David Pumpkins, I mean, are we 40 00:01:55.799 --> 00:01:58.439 supposed to know who that is? I know you have questions, Okay, 41 00:01:58.480 --> 00:02:00.519 I looked it up. Cu creb patology comes from the 42 00:02:00.599 --> 00:02:04.079 Latin for gourd, and yes, cucub petology looks like cucumbers 43 00:02:04.120 --> 00:02:06.200 because they're related. We're going to get into that later. 44 00:02:06.400 --> 00:02:08.800 But also I'd like to note that the word pumpkin 45 00:02:09.159 --> 00:02:12.120 comes from the French for pump pump, which came in 46 00:02:12.159 --> 00:02:15.719 a winding viny way from the Greek peppo, which means 47 00:02:15.759 --> 00:02:18.159 to be cooked by the sun. Genus and species of 48 00:02:18.199 --> 00:02:22.039 most pumpkins cucurbita pepo, a gourd that's a big cooked 49 00:02:22.039 --> 00:02:24.360 in the sun. So I was looking for a pumpkin 50 00:02:24.439 --> 00:02:28.319 expert or someone who studies pumpkins or a pumpkin scholar, 51 00:02:28.800 --> 00:02:30.960 but not just the science of pumpkins, but also the 52 00:02:31.000 --> 00:02:33.919 emotions and the folklore and the history. And I came 53 00:02:33.960 --> 00:02:40.840 across a book entitled Pumpkin, Pumpkin Folklore, History, Planting, Hints, 54 00:02:40.879 --> 00:02:44.039 and Good Eating by someone who loves pumpkins so much 55 00:02:44.199 --> 00:02:46.759 she studied them intensely in wordal whole book about them. 56 00:02:47.039 --> 00:02:49.639 So I tippy tapped around on the internet. I found 57 00:02:49.680 --> 00:02:53.159 this ologists info. I cold called her. I just left 58 00:02:53.199 --> 00:02:56.520 a voicemail at six pm on a Sunday like a freak. 59 00:02:56.759 --> 00:02:58.919 I was driving on my way back from the Mohave Desert. 60 00:02:59.159 --> 00:03:01.280 She called me back like an hour later, and I 61 00:03:01.360 --> 00:03:04.800 just happened to be driving through her tiny town of Yukaipa, 62 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:06.960 so I pulled over. I chatted with her for about 63 00:03:06.960 --> 00:03:09.479 fifteen minutes before I had the nerve to say, Hey, 64 00:03:09.599 --> 00:03:11.800 I know I'm a stranger and it's like eight pm 65 00:03:11.840 --> 00:03:13.360 on a Sunday night, but can I come over? 66 00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:13.719 Can? 67 00:03:13.800 --> 00:03:15.960 I talked about pumpkins and she said she was a 68 00:03:16.039 --> 00:03:18.759 night owl. Anyway, she gave me the address. I headed over. 69 00:03:19.319 --> 00:03:25.919 I'm approaching the porch. Here we go. Hello, and how 70 00:03:25.960 --> 00:03:28.960 could I be so lucky? So she was preceded by 71 00:03:29.039 --> 00:03:32.879 a few huabas and came out in comfy Sunday clothes, 72 00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:35.000 her blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. 73 00:03:35.360 --> 00:03:36.960 Right, Hi made you? 74 00:03:37.039 --> 00:03:41.479 Thanks let me lovely lady? So are you thanks for 75 00:03:41.560 --> 00:03:42.400 letting me come over? 76 00:03:42.560 --> 00:03:43.960 And I was like, I'm kind. 77 00:03:43.759 --> 00:03:47.319 Of really close to you. Is that okay? That's okay? 78 00:03:47.360 --> 00:03:50.840 We're really free for him around. Oh you're great. I'm 79 00:03:50.919 --> 00:03:55.719 an old old time hit. Now you're down mommy's doing 80 00:03:55.800 --> 00:03:56.439 an interview. 81 00:03:56.560 --> 00:03:59.599 Okay, So if you hear any little pup whimpers or 82 00:03:59.639 --> 00:04:03.199 the song gurgling of a nearby fish tank, just consider 83 00:04:03.240 --> 00:04:06.599 it part of the immersive pumpkin experience, which was lovely. 84 00:04:07.000 --> 00:04:10.360 We chatted about what is a pumpkin? How long have 85 00:04:10.439 --> 00:04:13.159 we been carving them up and cooking them down? How 86 00:04:13.199 --> 00:04:15.800 many varieties are there? What else are they used for? 87 00:04:16.000 --> 00:04:17.879 How do you pick out a good one? What are 88 00:04:17.920 --> 00:04:22.240 the biggest myths and the biggest pumpkins, How memories can 89 00:04:22.319 --> 00:04:26.399 follow you for decades, and the fascinating history that led 90 00:04:26.639 --> 00:04:29.360 this pumpkin studyre to embark on her research. 91 00:04:29.680 --> 00:04:34.000 So let alone, candle enjoy the flickering and cozy wisdom 92 00:04:34.399 --> 00:04:56.160 of curebatologists and Copeland. I'm a senior. 93 00:04:56.759 --> 00:05:00.240 I'm going to be seventy eight November twenty second, which 94 00:05:00.279 --> 00:05:03.920 falls on Thanksgiving every so many years. And that's how 95 00:05:04.120 --> 00:05:06.800 I one of the ways I come to love pumpkins. 96 00:05:07.120 --> 00:05:09.399 You must have had a pumpkin pie for your birthday? 97 00:05:09.759 --> 00:05:14.560 Oh? I always had pumpkin pie, pumpkin cake, pumpkin soup, 98 00:05:14.879 --> 00:05:16.519 pumpkin nip, you name it. 99 00:05:17.240 --> 00:05:19.000 And did you get sick of having a pumpkin. 100 00:05:19.279 --> 00:05:21.959 Oh no, no, no, no, no, never never never no. 101 00:05:22.439 --> 00:05:25.759 And it was encouraging to me because I sort of 102 00:05:25.839 --> 00:05:29.120 adopted pumpkins is my own thing. So no, I never 103 00:05:29.160 --> 00:05:30.720 got tired of pumpkins. 104 00:05:31.040 --> 00:05:32.879 And now, were you always really curious? Did you go 105 00:05:33.040 --> 00:05:34.199 up curious as a kid? 106 00:05:34.279 --> 00:05:37.240 Oh yeah, Oh yeah, I used to. I used to 107 00:05:37.319 --> 00:05:39.959 lie in the grass and look through the grass and 108 00:05:40.000 --> 00:05:43.040 look at insects and try to imagine what their lives 109 00:05:43.120 --> 00:05:46.519 would be like living down there, and you know what 110 00:05:46.560 --> 00:05:47.720 their world was like. 111 00:05:48.319 --> 00:05:50.920 So when we chatted on the phone and described herself 112 00:05:50.920 --> 00:05:54.879 as quote an unconventional senior, woohoo. And when a person 113 00:05:55.000 --> 00:05:58.560 uses woohoo as a form of punctuation, you have to 114 00:05:58.600 --> 00:06:00.480 make it. You turn and you have to to come 115 00:06:00.560 --> 00:06:02.480 over to meet this person and hear about their life 116 00:06:02.519 --> 00:06:05.079 and how pumpkins fit into the past and the present. 117 00:06:05.360 --> 00:06:08.279 Kind of a hippie, I'm very much a hippie, never 118 00:06:08.399 --> 00:06:10.839 into the drug scene and all that. But I love 119 00:06:10.920 --> 00:06:14.199 the music, I love the art. I love creativity. I 120 00:06:14.240 --> 00:06:17.480 love people speaking up about things they believe in. 121 00:06:18.040 --> 00:06:20.120 Tell me a little bit about your background. What did 122 00:06:20.120 --> 00:06:20.600 you study? 123 00:06:20.959 --> 00:06:24.959 Okay, I started out in nursing when I finally got 124 00:06:25.000 --> 00:06:29.319 to go to college. I think I was close to thirty, 125 00:06:30.040 --> 00:06:33.639 and so I started out in nursing and I went 126 00:06:33.720 --> 00:06:37.959 through that about two years. And after two years, I said, gee, 127 00:06:38.000 --> 00:06:39.839 I wonder when we're ever going to get to go 128 00:06:39.879 --> 00:06:42.639 to a hospital. This is a four year program. I 129 00:06:42.720 --> 00:06:44.759 sort of need to get a sense of what it's 130 00:06:44.920 --> 00:06:46.680 like to be a nurse. And so I said, what 131 00:06:46.720 --> 00:06:50.279 could I be. Well, my husband at the time said, 132 00:06:50.319 --> 00:06:52.759 you know, I'm going to take you to this place 133 00:06:53.079 --> 00:06:57.800 in Los Angeles. It's called the Johnson O'Connor Research Foundation. 134 00:06:58.279 --> 00:07:02.319 And these people test you based on your innate abilities, 135 00:07:02.399 --> 00:07:06.040 not on questions that they ask you. So they did 136 00:07:06.079 --> 00:07:09.800 this long testing process for days and days, and then 137 00:07:09.839 --> 00:07:13.480 they came up with this idea that he said, you 138 00:07:13.480 --> 00:07:18.839 are perfect for archaeology. Oh, I said, archaeology. I said, well, 139 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:22.480 you know, that does sound really interesting. So I got 140 00:07:22.480 --> 00:07:26.079 a degree in archaeology and I actually worked in the field. 141 00:07:26.160 --> 00:07:30.360 I went out into Arizona, New Mexico, and also I 142 00:07:30.399 --> 00:07:32.079 went down into Mexico. 143 00:07:32.680 --> 00:07:35.759 So as an archaeologist, Anne was researching the pottery of 144 00:07:35.920 --> 00:07:39.000 indigenous people of the Southwest and Mexico, looking at some 145 00:07:39.079 --> 00:07:42.639 pre Columbian methods of firing, pottery and cooking, and she 146 00:07:42.680 --> 00:07:43.879 said she loved the work. 147 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:48.639 So I loved the study. It was kind of perfect 148 00:07:48.720 --> 00:07:54.959 for me. Unfortunately, archaeologists have this thing that's known as 149 00:07:55.160 --> 00:08:02.040 the archaeological diseases. So I got paratyphoid and then I 150 00:08:02.079 --> 00:08:07.480 got valley fever, and by then I said, you know, 151 00:08:07.720 --> 00:08:10.839 I may not make it moneymore years if I don't 152 00:08:10.879 --> 00:08:11.680 switch field. 153 00:08:12.680 --> 00:08:15.560 Anne also worked as a graphic artist doing typesetting, and 154 00:08:15.639 --> 00:08:19.279 she started a small nonprofit for people dealing with physical 155 00:08:19.360 --> 00:08:22.720 and developmental challenges. She said she was deeply affected by 156 00:08:22.720 --> 00:08:25.639 her brother's experience in Vietnam after he returned with a 157 00:08:25.680 --> 00:08:30.920 brain injury and PTSD. This woman's heart is a cucurbato maxima, 158 00:08:31.199 --> 00:08:33.639 which is a species of giant pumpkin, which we'll talk 159 00:08:33.639 --> 00:08:34.159 about later. 160 00:08:35.240 --> 00:08:39.320 And I love people. I love relating to other people 161 00:08:39.480 --> 00:08:42.399 of all kinds and helping them in different ways. I 162 00:08:42.480 --> 00:08:45.759 taught illiterate adults, so I did a lot of things 163 00:08:45.799 --> 00:08:48.399 in my life. So then how did I come to 164 00:08:48.440 --> 00:08:49.519 write this book? 165 00:08:50.279 --> 00:08:53.519 Solid question. So Anne's husband at the time was an 166 00:08:53.519 --> 00:08:56.279 anthropologist who was super encouraging. 167 00:08:56.120 --> 00:08:58.759 And he said, you know you're good at writing. You 168 00:08:58.960 --> 00:09:01.559 like to write. Why don't you because you know, why 169 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:03.799 don't you write a book? He said, why don't you 170 00:09:03.840 --> 00:09:09.399 write a book about I don't know pumpkins. And we 171 00:09:09.519 --> 00:09:13.399 had been to Virginia when we first got together, and 172 00:09:13.480 --> 00:09:16.720 I had never been there before. It was raining, it 173 00:09:16.799 --> 00:09:20.519 was in the winter or fall. It was muddy everywhere, 174 00:09:20.840 --> 00:09:24.080 and we were driving through the hills and I just 175 00:09:24.159 --> 00:09:29.440 suddenly said, pumpkins, We're coming to pumpkins. And he said, no, 176 00:09:29.639 --> 00:09:32.679 don't be silly, there's no and he didn't even finish 177 00:09:32.679 --> 00:09:34.919 his sentence. We come over the top of the hill 178 00:09:35.200 --> 00:09:37.320 and there on the right side, down at the bottom 179 00:09:37.320 --> 00:09:39.159 of the hill, and write the mud puddle and the 180 00:09:39.200 --> 00:09:43.759 biggest mud puddle is this pumpkin stand. Uh. So I 181 00:09:43.879 --> 00:09:46.200 had to go and get my pumpkin right then. And 182 00:09:46.320 --> 00:09:49.000 I had to you know, you don't just go get 183 00:09:49.000 --> 00:09:52.799 a pumpkin. You have to evaluate it, right. You have 184 00:09:52.879 --> 00:09:55.559 to make sure it has the qualities. And the qualities 185 00:09:55.679 --> 00:09:58.919 change every year, because you know, they're magical. They don't 186 00:09:58.960 --> 00:10:03.120 just stay the same. So I went and picked this really, 187 00:10:03.159 --> 00:10:05.960 really big pumpkin because I decided I had to have 188 00:10:06.000 --> 00:10:08.840 a big, big pumpkin. Now, mind you, we had to 189 00:10:08.879 --> 00:10:13.399 fly back from Virginia to California, so I wouldn't let 190 00:10:13.480 --> 00:10:15.639 go of my pumpkin. So I took it on the 191 00:10:15.679 --> 00:10:19.159 plane with me. And it was so cute because normally, 192 00:10:19.200 --> 00:10:21.600 you know, people are kind of like they're looking at you, 193 00:10:21.759 --> 00:10:23.600 Oh gee, what are they up to? Could they be 194 00:10:23.639 --> 00:10:27.159 a terrorist? Who knows? You know, But even the pilot, 195 00:10:27.279 --> 00:10:31.600 everybody was smiling and they were like, oh yeah, take 196 00:10:31.679 --> 00:10:35.559 it in and so so that kind of that kind 197 00:10:35.559 --> 00:10:36.200 of started. 198 00:10:36.759 --> 00:10:39.159 And had a few friends who were cornet chefs with 199 00:10:39.240 --> 00:10:42.320 this huge library of vintage books, and she would leave 200 00:10:42.399 --> 00:10:43.879 through them just mesmerized. 201 00:10:44.519 --> 00:10:50.879 And they had this remarkable collection of old, old, old cookbooks, 202 00:10:50.960 --> 00:10:54.039 I mean from the eighteen hundreds, and in fact, every 203 00:10:54.159 --> 00:10:58.000 recipe was cooked on a wood burning stove in an 204 00:10:58.039 --> 00:11:02.960 iron pot, and there weren't measurements. So Luisa and I 205 00:11:03.039 --> 00:11:07.799 had fun trying to figure out how much do you think? Oh, 206 00:11:07.879 --> 00:11:10.440 I don't know, what do you think? And like I said, 207 00:11:10.480 --> 00:11:13.600 I'm unconventional in a sense. Number one, I don't make 208 00:11:13.639 --> 00:11:18.480 a recipe twice the same way. And number two, I 209 00:11:18.679 --> 00:11:22.440 question things that are called for to put in. And 210 00:11:22.600 --> 00:11:25.279 I address this in my book because I don't want 211 00:11:25.320 --> 00:11:27.759 anybody to go. She forgot to tell me to put 212 00:11:27.799 --> 00:11:32.039 in a quarter teaspoon of salt, and my cooking is ruined, 213 00:11:32.200 --> 00:11:35.399 you know. And so I told people, you know what, 214 00:11:35.559 --> 00:11:38.480 salt is a very personal issue, and I did a 215 00:11:38.480 --> 00:11:40.879 little bit on the history of salt, and I said, 216 00:11:40.960 --> 00:11:45.399 you know, salt is your choice, but it's not an essential. 217 00:11:46.200 --> 00:11:48.480 You're not going to ruin your recipe if you don't 218 00:11:48.480 --> 00:11:51.360 put salt in it at all business And I said, 219 00:11:51.360 --> 00:11:55.080 why should I tell you a quarter of a teaspoon 220 00:11:55.120 --> 00:11:57.120 when maybe you want to put a whole tea spoon 221 00:11:57.200 --> 00:11:59.519 or even a tablespoon. It's up to you. You want 222 00:11:59.559 --> 00:12:03.480 to kill you yourself? Really have had it, you know, 223 00:12:03.559 --> 00:12:08.440 have fun. So so that was that was how I 224 00:12:08.519 --> 00:12:11.320 got into so Luisa and I would try out all 225 00:12:11.360 --> 00:12:14.720 these recipes and like we made we made pumpkin soap 226 00:12:14.720 --> 00:12:18.279 and it was one of our funniest experiences because neither 227 00:12:18.360 --> 00:12:21.000 of us had made soap before and they're calling for 228 00:12:21.159 --> 00:12:24.840 like mutton fat and things like that that we didn't 229 00:12:24.960 --> 00:12:28.399 really have. So we sort of had to figure out, well, 230 00:12:28.440 --> 00:12:31.840 what would be like mutton fat? And I'm like, could 231 00:12:31.879 --> 00:12:34.279 we go get the donkey down the street, or how 232 00:12:34.320 --> 00:12:37.159 about a gooser and what should we use, And we 233 00:12:37.360 --> 00:12:40.320 just kept experimenting and it took us a long time 234 00:12:40.399 --> 00:12:43.480 to get it to where we actually were able to 235 00:12:43.519 --> 00:12:45.639 make it, but we did do it. So that was 236 00:12:45.840 --> 00:12:47.120 that was a heap of fun. 237 00:12:48.039 --> 00:12:49.799 And now getting back to how to pick a pumpkin? 238 00:12:50.080 --> 00:12:50.480 Uh huh? 239 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:53.039 How do you pick a pumpkin? What are we looking for? 240 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:56.559 It's going to be different every single time you go. 241 00:12:56.759 --> 00:12:59.000 It's going to be different. The color's going to be different, 242 00:12:59.519 --> 00:13:01.799 the shape, but the pumpkin's going to be different, the 243 00:13:01.840 --> 00:13:04.679 size of it, whether it has a stam at the 244 00:13:04.720 --> 00:13:08.000 top that's long, or whether it doesn't even have a stam. 245 00:13:08.000 --> 00:13:11.200 And it's going to change every year according to what 246 00:13:11.279 --> 00:13:15.000 you're you know your person. It's I mean, it's magic 247 00:13:15.120 --> 00:13:17.720 every year. You'll know it when you see it, and 248 00:13:17.960 --> 00:13:21.399 it may take a long time to figure it out, 249 00:13:21.639 --> 00:13:24.759 but that's half the fun of getting one. 250 00:13:25.000 --> 00:13:28.679 So for a decorative pumpkin, use intuition. You can summon 251 00:13:28.960 --> 00:13:32.240 your spidey sense, tap into some witches magic and just 252 00:13:32.399 --> 00:13:35.200 get magnetized to the right one. Now, if you're going 253 00:13:35.240 --> 00:13:38.039 to eat it, the darker, the green stem and the 254 00:13:38.120 --> 00:13:40.840 orange skin mean it's ready to be picked ready to 255 00:13:40.840 --> 00:13:43.000 be purchased, and you can hold it up to your 256 00:13:43.039 --> 00:13:45.600 ear and you can thump it. And the louder that 257 00:13:45.720 --> 00:13:49.000 hollow echoe sound, the better the pumpkin. In side note, 258 00:13:49.159 --> 00:13:52.600 if you ever need to lovingly threaten someone, say for 259 00:13:52.759 --> 00:13:56.080 venmoing you for enchiladas when you said they wear your treat, 260 00:13:56.519 --> 00:13:59.320 or not texting you the second they get home safe, 261 00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:01.679 you can always say that you'll thump them on the pumpkin. 262 00:14:02.039 --> 00:14:03.840 That's been a word family threat for years and it 263 00:14:03.879 --> 00:14:06.399 translates to I love you, how dare you? And now? 264 00:14:06.399 --> 00:14:08.480 What about some varieties of pumpkins? 265 00:14:09.039 --> 00:14:11.720 Oh, there are a lot, a lot, a lot of 266 00:14:11.840 --> 00:14:17.039 pumpkin varieties. Now, a pumpkin is not a typical fruit. 267 00:14:17.440 --> 00:14:20.600 It's also not a vegetable. Oh it's no, it's not 268 00:14:20.639 --> 00:14:25.120 a vegetable. It's a fruit, well, sort of a pumpkin, 269 00:14:25.159 --> 00:14:28.120 believe it or not. Is a berry? Oh? What? It's 270 00:14:28.200 --> 00:14:33.200 a berry? Why it's a berry? Because it said I'm 271 00:14:33.200 --> 00:14:36.279 going to be a berry and it's erry. True. 272 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:41.200 It's a freakin berry, y'all. It's a frickin berry. And 273 00:14:41.240 --> 00:14:45.080 I looked it up, and so are cucumbers, and avocados 274 00:14:45.080 --> 00:14:49.320 are a berry? Bananas are a berry. Eggplants are a berry. 275 00:14:49.399 --> 00:14:53.759 These are berries. They are fleshy seeded fruits. They're formed 276 00:14:53.759 --> 00:14:58.519 from a single flower containing one ovary boom berries. Anne says, 277 00:14:58.639 --> 00:15:01.480 the biggest fum flamp she's here bunk is that pumpkins 278 00:15:01.600 --> 00:15:03.919 are not a vegetable, and in her book she calls 279 00:15:03.960 --> 00:15:07.679 the pumpkin a botanical platypus, but refer to them as 280 00:15:07.679 --> 00:15:10.919 a vegetable. She might thump you on the berry. 281 00:15:10.679 --> 00:15:14.919 So, yeah, you have a lot of fun with pumpkins, 282 00:15:14.960 --> 00:15:18.720 because there's a lot of really different things about pumpkins. 283 00:15:19.000 --> 00:15:22.480 They come in different sizes, shapes. They were grown in 284 00:15:22.759 --> 00:15:27.919 Mexico way way back, even before the Incas and so forth. 285 00:15:28.360 --> 00:15:31.720 They were grown in China way way back. So I 286 00:15:31.720 --> 00:15:35.120 don't know the Chinese name. Sorry to say for those 287 00:15:35.159 --> 00:15:39.240 of you who speak fluent Chinese, I'm sorry. I don't 288 00:15:39.279 --> 00:15:40.320 mean to disappoint you. 289 00:15:41.440 --> 00:15:44.159 And what are some of your favorite varieties of pumpkin? 290 00:15:44.759 --> 00:15:49.600 I like, there's a pumpkin that is green, that has 291 00:15:49.720 --> 00:15:55.440 stripes and sometimes it has red and green, and they're 292 00:15:55.559 --> 00:15:58.799 very small. I think they're called kabasi. 293 00:15:59.440 --> 00:16:02.080 Okay, these are pumpkins or Japanese And if you Google 294 00:16:02.200 --> 00:16:06.080 image search kobacha in Japan, you will find all manner 295 00:16:06.120 --> 00:16:09.399 of pumpkins. But to English speakers, kobacha means a short 296 00:16:09.600 --> 00:16:13.759 squat squash that you've probably had in tempura, and you 297 00:16:13.840 --> 00:16:16.840 either save it as the last piece you eat as 298 00:16:16.879 --> 00:16:19.480 a treat, or you eat it first because life is short, 299 00:16:19.519 --> 00:16:21.080 and someone at the table may say, ooh, can I 300 00:16:21.080 --> 00:16:23.559 have some of your tempura, and you want the pumpkin 301 00:16:23.600 --> 00:16:27.240 one for yourself, you gotta eat it fast. Pas Australians 302 00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:31.399 call all kinds of squash pumpkin. It's calabasa and Spanish 303 00:16:31.440 --> 00:16:34.759 and candied in Mexico for Day the Dead festivities, and 304 00:16:34.799 --> 00:16:38.240 the British used to call them pumpions. Now the smooth 305 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:42.279 doorstep pumpkins we're used to in America are Connecticut field pumpkins, 306 00:16:42.639 --> 00:16:45.000 and the smaller ones that we make int pies are 307 00:16:45.039 --> 00:16:50.120 sweet sugar pies. And there are Jarendale blue pumpkins, Casper 308 00:16:50.279 --> 00:16:53.919 white pumpkins. The pumpy ones are called peanut. There's Long 309 00:16:53.919 --> 00:16:56.679 Island cheese pumpkins because they look like a cheese wheel. 310 00:16:56.840 --> 00:17:01.639 There are others called white ghost, warty, goblins, baby boo. Essentially, 311 00:17:01.720 --> 00:17:03.919 just come up with a new pumpkin and give it 312 00:17:03.960 --> 00:17:07.240 your cat's weirdest nickname. You're good to go. But how 313 00:17:07.240 --> 00:17:08.440 do you make a new pumpkin? 314 00:17:08.920 --> 00:17:12.960 If you want to cross pollinate pumpkins, you can't just 315 00:17:13.400 --> 00:17:16.880 put the seats together and expect them to grow, right. 316 00:17:17.039 --> 00:17:19.480 You have to literally hand pollinate them. You have to 317 00:17:19.519 --> 00:17:22.880 pretend to be a bee. I'm go out there and 318 00:17:22.920 --> 00:17:26.200 buzz around and take your little que tip and hand 319 00:17:26.240 --> 00:17:31.799 pollinate them. And then sometimes they will grow for you, 320 00:17:31.839 --> 00:17:35.839 and sometimes they won't. It depends on the level of 321 00:17:36.119 --> 00:17:39.640 the type of pumpkin that it is. So back in 322 00:17:39.720 --> 00:17:44.000 the day when I started working on the Pumpkin Cookbook, 323 00:17:44.279 --> 00:17:47.559 it was pretty incredible because I'd go to the grocery store. 324 00:17:47.759 --> 00:17:51.720 They would have gotten the Halloween pumpkins out, but they'd 325 00:17:51.720 --> 00:17:54.400 have a lot of pumpkins left still, and I'd tell 326 00:17:54.440 --> 00:17:56.640 them I was writing the book, and they'd give me 327 00:17:56.880 --> 00:18:00.400 a whole I mean, I had people give me a 328 00:18:00.480 --> 00:18:04.400 whole basketful, a whole grocery basketful of pumpkins for free 329 00:18:04.839 --> 00:18:07.240 because they wanted to get rid of them anyway. And 330 00:18:07.279 --> 00:18:09.839 they said, oh, wow, you know you're gonna write. Okay, good, 331 00:18:09.960 --> 00:18:13.240 here take them. During pioneer days because they didn't Noliays 332 00:18:13.319 --> 00:18:17.839 have a flower available, and they also did noise have 333 00:18:18.440 --> 00:18:24.160 food for the cattle. So those were used in particularly 334 00:18:24.240 --> 00:18:27.960 back East, to feed the cattle and also to get flowers. 335 00:18:28.039 --> 00:18:32.119 So they would they would slice the pumpkins and get 336 00:18:32.119 --> 00:18:34.079 the seeds out of them, and then they would hang 337 00:18:34.160 --> 00:18:36.519 them up on the ceilings to dry, and then they 338 00:18:36.559 --> 00:18:40.480 would grind them into flour. And they actually made pumpkin flour. 339 00:18:41.000 --> 00:18:43.640 I didn't know that. Yep. Tell me a little bit 340 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:48.640 more about the history of pumpkins. So South America rights 341 00:18:48.799 --> 00:18:52.680 and then at what point did they start growing them 342 00:18:52.720 --> 00:18:55.200 in North America and Europe? I mean, they're pretty much 343 00:18:55.240 --> 00:18:56.640 grown on every continent. 344 00:18:56.720 --> 00:19:00.559 Right, Well, they figured that the American Indians were growing 345 00:19:00.559 --> 00:19:03.640 them for a while. They just may not have looked 346 00:19:04.200 --> 00:19:07.359 like the pumpkins we have today. They might have looked 347 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:10.680 more like a squash, for example. They might have been smaller. 348 00:19:10.920 --> 00:19:13.920 They believed that the seeds were very healthy for you, 349 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:17.079 which they are, so they believe that they would take 350 00:19:17.119 --> 00:19:20.160 away like parasites and things like that. So they would 351 00:19:20.160 --> 00:19:23.559 eat the seeds and dry them and neat them. 352 00:19:24.079 --> 00:19:27.720 Okay, side note, how ancient are pumpkins. Did they come 353 00:19:27.720 --> 00:19:28.480 from aliens? 354 00:19:28.640 --> 00:19:29.240 Probably not. 355 00:19:29.599 --> 00:19:33.440 Scientists have found seeds that are over seven thousand years old. 356 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:36.920 I think they originated in Central America as smaller, more 357 00:19:37.039 --> 00:19:41.119 bitter little gourds, and indigenous populations all over the continent 358 00:19:41.200 --> 00:19:45.559 have for centuries use pumpkins in stews, dried them. They 359 00:19:45.640 --> 00:19:49.519 use them in medicine. Squash blossoms which also side note 360 00:19:49.720 --> 00:19:52.880 amazing fried thank you very much. Those were used for 361 00:19:53.000 --> 00:19:56.039 skin injuries, and from eighteen thirty six to the mid 362 00:19:56.079 --> 00:19:59.720 nineteen hundreds pumpkin seeds were recognized as a remedy for 363 00:20:00.119 --> 00:20:03.599 testinal infections, and more recent research has been on the 364 00:20:03.759 --> 00:20:06.759 l trip to fan in pepita seeds helping with symptoms 365 00:20:06.799 --> 00:20:09.119 of depression, which part of that is probably just sitting 366 00:20:09.160 --> 00:20:11.960 there cracking them with your teeth is so dang dang fun. Also, 367 00:20:12.000 --> 00:20:16.039 according to Kaiser Permanente's website, there have been pumpkin seed 368 00:20:16.200 --> 00:20:20.319 medical trials showing promise in reducing kidney stone risk and 369 00:20:20.680 --> 00:20:24.559 helping with a parasite that comes from snails. So your 370 00:20:24.599 --> 00:20:29.400 glowing porch orb contains a little botanical wizardry. You mentioned 371 00:20:29.440 --> 00:20:33.240 earlier that pumpkins are magical. Oh, absolutely, we'll talk to 372 00:20:33.279 --> 00:20:36.079 you a little bit about how you feel about pumpkins. 373 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:40.559 Yeah, I mean, it's not just the pumpkin itself, it's 374 00:20:40.799 --> 00:20:44.079 the whole season that it us shures in. It's all 375 00:20:44.119 --> 00:20:47.480 the good things that we know and love, getting together 376 00:20:47.559 --> 00:20:52.000 with friends, changing our personality via costume. 377 00:20:52.960 --> 00:20:56.519 Halloween, quick reminder, is the eve of all hollows day 378 00:20:56.559 --> 00:20:59.119 to honor saints, and the tradition of dressing up comes 379 00:20:59.119 --> 00:21:02.160 in part two in the costume that you're wearing, and 380 00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:05.440 partly to scare off the demons that are just all around, 381 00:21:05.960 --> 00:21:08.720 just chilling, waiting to cross the boundary and to death 382 00:21:08.759 --> 00:21:11.319 the next day. It's kind of like right before some 383 00:21:11.440 --> 00:21:15.240 holy day, we need to just wild out and get stupid, 384 00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:18.720 like Marti Gras before Lent. You got New Year's Eve, 385 00:21:18.920 --> 00:21:22.680 before all of our January first resolutions take effect. And 386 00:21:22.720 --> 00:21:26.359 then there's always those soggy eyed squads of pre wedding 387 00:21:26.440 --> 00:21:30.559 bachelor and bachelorettes just vaping through Las Vegas casinos weeks 388 00:21:30.599 --> 00:21:33.480 before a wedding. Now, some researchers have found a link 389 00:21:33.480 --> 00:21:37.359 between higher caloric intake in the colder months, attributing it 390 00:21:37.400 --> 00:21:40.480 to old kind of hard wiring for storing up on 391 00:21:40.599 --> 00:21:43.839 fat before a fast. So Halloween is the time to 392 00:21:43.920 --> 00:21:46.200 dress up like someone who can kick more ass than 393 00:21:46.240 --> 00:21:49.000 you can in order to ward off evil, and also 394 00:21:49.119 --> 00:21:52.079 to eat all the candy you can because death looms 395 00:21:52.079 --> 00:21:54.440 close and the fruit trees will be bare in the winter. 396 00:21:54.720 --> 00:21:55.400 It makes sense. 397 00:21:55.759 --> 00:21:58.880 There were all these kind of magical things when I 398 00:21:59.079 --> 00:22:03.119 was growing up. We did bobbing for apples, we did 399 00:22:03.200 --> 00:22:06.640 popcorn balls, we did you know today they just go 400 00:22:06.680 --> 00:22:08.440 out and buy a bag of candy, throw it in 401 00:22:08.480 --> 00:22:10.240