Cauldron Carving

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By Angela Denstad Stigeler   –   

Here’s a trick worth trying: before you carve frightful faces into your fall gourds, set aside a small, stout sugar pumpkin to serve as cauldron for a fun and festive dip. A queso fundido, Spanish for “molten cheese,” is just the thing to bake up in a big pumpkin bowl and serve hot to guests coming in from the chill of night. A spicy, stick-to-your-ribs sort of party snack, it’s appealing enough to tempt kids away from the candy bowl. As diners dip away at the cheesy potion, they might even eat up the baked pumpkin, too. So try your hand at this warm and bubbling carved cauldron for some cheesy Halloween fun—with fundido!

Pumpkin Queso Fundido

1 small sugar pumpkin, about 3 pounds

8 ounces dried chorizo, diced*

1 jalapeño pepper, seeds and ribs removed, finely chopped

1 4-ounce can chopped green chiles

½ teaspoon ground cumin

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth

2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 cup shredded Monterey jack cheese

Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish

Blue corn tortilla chips, for serving

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Slice off the top 1 ½ inches of the pumpkin and scoop out the seeds and pulp from the cavity. Wash and reserve the seeds for toasting, if desired.

Heat the diced chorizo in a medium pot over medium-high heat until the fat begins to render, about 5 minutes. Add the jalapeno, green chiles, cumin and cayenne and cook, stirring, until the jalapeno softens, about 2 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, until the flour is slightly toasted, about 2 minutes. Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and stir in the cheeses. Cook stirring occasionally, until the cheese melts and the mixture is creamy, about 3 more minutes.

Place the pumpkin in a small baking dish and fill the pumpkin with the cheese mixture. Add 1 inch of boiling water to the baking dish. Cover with the pumpkin top and bake until the pumpkin is tender, 1 to 1 ½ hours. Remove the lid and continue to bake until the cheese is golden and bubbly, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, sprinkle with cilantro and serve with tortilla chips.

Recipe adapted from Food Network Kitchen

*If you can’t find chorizo, use any spicy sausages, casings removed, and brown the meat in a little oil before proceeding with the rest of the recipe as written.