Pumpkins are primarily made up of water. Once you carve them and they start to lose their moisture, they unfortunately start to rot!
Ehow.com has a great article on prolonging your pumpkin’s life. Here’s what you do:
Step 1 – Clean pumpkin with washcloth and remove dirt. I also use a anti bacterial gel on mine. Carve it as usual.
Step 2 – Apply a Vaseline jelly type product everywhere you cut. Line it along the inside and the face cut outs. This will help keep moisture in and bacteria and heat out.
Step 3– When you are not using them (at night) wrap in Saran Wrap and place in a cold area. Your fridge will work fine. Take it out the following morning and remove wrap and place back on your porch.
Repeat as often as you need. Never wipe off the jelly. It helps prolong the life of your pumpkin. I slather mine on well and re-apply after 2 days. Get a lot!
And if you want more pumpkin fun, check out some Hershey’s Pumpkin Stencils, advanced stencils (including stencils to carve Twilight characters.. I’m not kidding) and brush up on your Jack-o’-Lantern traditions and history with a Wikipedia article.
Tags: kitchen tips
