Baked stuffed pumpkin turns a whole sugar pumpkin into the most dramatic centerpiece on the table. The cavity gets packed with sausage, sourdough, and a stout cheese sauce, then roasted until the inside is rich and the flesh is spoon tender. You serve it right from the shell.
Why This Baked Stuffed Pumpkin Stuns
- A whole pumpkin doubles as the bowl and the centerpiece
- Sausage, sourdough, and Jarlsberg make a savory, hearty filling
- A stout cheese sauce adds deep, earthy flavor
- Scoop into the soft pumpkin walls along with the filling
Think of it as a cross between cheese fondue and stuffing, all baked inside the pumpkin itself. It is showy enough for a holiday yet rustic enough for a cozy night in.
Set the pumpkin on a rimmed sheet pan, since the filling can bubble over as it bakes.
Save this recipe
Enter your email and I’ll send this recipe straight to your inbox.
Why You’ll Love This Baked Stuffed Pumpkin
- The roasted pumpkin walls turn silky and sweet against the savory filling.
- Stout and coarse mustard give the cheese sauce a deep, grown up flavor.
- This savory stuffed pumpkin makes a centerpiece people actually want to dig into.
Ingredient Notes
These notes help you shop smart; the exact measurements in the recipe card below tell you how much of each to use. A few items, like the stout and the cheese, really shape the final flavor.
- Sugar pumpkin is the small, sweet variety meant for cooking, not a carving pumpkin.
- Sourdough bread holds up to the sauce and adds a pleasant tang.
- Hot Italian sausage brings spice and richness to the filling.
- Jarlsberg cheese melts into a smooth, nutty sauce with the stout.
You will want a rimmed baking sheet, a large saute pan, a heavy 2 quart pot, and a big mixing bowl. The rimmed sheet is key because the pumpkin can boil over.
How to Make Baked Stuffed Pumpkin
This baked stuffed pumpkin comes together in stages: toast the bread, build the filling, make the sauce, then bake it all inside the shell. Each part is simple, and they layer into something special.
- Toast the oiled, seasoned sourdough cubes at 400 degrees until golden, then add them to a big bowl.
- Brown the sausage, cook the shallots in the fat, and stir both into the bread.
- Simmer the stout, then whisk in cheese, flour, mustard, and seasonings until silky, finishing with the cream.
- Pour the sauce over the bread mixture, pack it into the pumpkin, cover with foil, and bake 50 minutes, then top with cheese and bake uncovered until melted.
This makes about 6 servings. Let the pumpkin rest 5 minutes before serving so it firms up enough to scoop. You can toast the bread and brown the sausage a day ahead to split up the work.
Storage Options
Leftovers of this stuffed pumpkin keep nicely once the filling is scooped out. Store the filling and pumpkin flesh together.
- Refrigerate the scooped filling in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
- Freeze the filling for up to 1 month, though the texture softens.
- Reheat in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes, or until hot.
Variations & Substitutions
This dish welcomes swaps depending on your taste and what is in the kitchen. Keep the bread, cheese, and sauce balance and you are set.
- Use mild sausage or a meatless crumble for a gentler version.
- Swap gruyere or sharp cheddar for the Jarlsberg.
- Replace the stout with a dry hard cider for a lighter, fruitier note.
What to Serve with Baked Stuffed Pumpkin
Baked stuffed pumpkin is hearty and rich, so fresh, simple sides keep the meal balanced. Lean into autumn flavors alongside it.
- A crisp apple and arugula salad with a sharp vinaigrette.
- A bowl of curried pumpkin and sweet potato soup to start.
- A plate of pumpkin and sage spaetzle with beer braised brats for a heartier table.
Here are the questions that come up most often when people tackle a whole stuffed pumpkin.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kind of pumpkin is best for baked stuffed pumpkin?
Use a small sugar pumpkin, also called a pie pumpkin. Its flesh is sweeter and more tender than a large carving pumpkin.
How do I know when the pumpkin is done?
The walls should be tender enough to scoop with a spoon and the filling should be hot and bubbly in the center.
Can I prep it ahead?
Yes. Toast the bread and brown the sausage a day early, then assemble and bake when you are ready to serve.
Do you eat the pumpkin shell?
You scoop the soft cooked flesh from the inside walls along with the filling. The tough outer skin is not eaten.
Bring this to the table whole and let everyone watch as you scoop into it. It is the kind of dish that gets the whole room talking.
Baked Stuffed Pumpkin
Save this recipe
Enter your email and I’ll send this recipe straight to your inbox.
Ingredients
- 5 lb sugar pumpkin seeded and cleaned
- 1 loaf of sourdough bread see notes
- 3 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 Tbsp powdered sage
- salt and pepper to taste I used sea salt
- 1 lb sausage removed from casings I used hot Italian
- ¼ shallots diced
- 18 oz stout
- ¾ pound Jarlsberg cheese shredded (reserve ¼ cup to top at end of baking)
- 2 Tbsp flour
- 1½ tbsp coarse grained mustard
- ½ tsp salt
- lots of fresh cracked black pepper
- 2 dashes hot sauce or more if you like
- ⅔ cup light cream
Instructions
- Place pumpkin on a rimmed baking sheet. (it will boil over so make sure to use a rimmed sheet) Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 400º.
- Cube the sourdough bread and place on a cookie sheet. Drizzle olive oil over top. Sprinkle sage, salt and pepper over cubes and toss to coat. Bake in a 400º oven until golden brown. Remove and place in a large mixing bowl.
- In a large saute pan, brown sausage over medium heat. Remove sausage from pan using a slotted spoon and place in the same bowl as the bread cubes. Keep fat in pan.
- Cook shallots in reserved fat over medium heat for about three to four minutes. Pour shallots over bread and sausage mixture. Stir to combine.
- In a heavy 2 qt pan heat stout over medium heat. Bring to a simmer. Add cheese, flour, mustard, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Stir continuously until the mixture is silken. Add cream and just stir to combine.
- Pour sauce over bread/sausage mixture. Stir well. Place mixture into pumpkin cavity. Cover with tin foil and bake on the 2nd to bottom rack in your oven for 50 minutes. After 50 minutes, put remaining cheese on top and allow to finish cooking without foil.
- Allow to sit for five minutes before serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Just a question: do you serve this by slicing into chunks so everyone gets their share of pumpkin to eat with the filling?
Yes, you absolutely can do that. We just scooped it out by the spoonful, but slicing works too. And probably neater, I might add.
Wow Melanie this looks amazing!! I am sure that your family loved it.
Yup, it’s hard not to like this. Especially the boys. They loved it.
OOOO this looks incredible!! Love the sausage, cheese, mustard and stout combination! Already adding the ingrediants to my weekly shopping list, cannot wait to make it! Beautiful photos as well
Thank you! Let me know what you think!
I love this recipe Melanie! A food trifecta indeed, it would have been perfect yesterday for football. I can’t wait to try it!
If I were serving it for game day, I’d serve it with Pennsylvania Dutch pretzels for dipping. Yummy.
You’re right! This dish is spectacular!
Thank you! Pumpkins are sort of dramatic in their own right. Definitely fun to photograph!
Your photos are DIVINE. I want to dive in, fax first.
Thank you! Pumpkins are sort of sexy to shoot.
What a wonderful fall recipe! I love the presentation in the pumpkin!
I just tried this out (with some modifications) the other night and it was delicious!
http://dilettantedoyenne.blogspot.com/2013/10/happy-fall-yall-iii-pumpkin-its-whats.html#more
Love your pics!
Do you think that this recipe could be made as individual side dishes by
Putting the “stuffing” inside small sugar pumpkins and baked
Instead of a 5lb one? Was thinking of setting the “small” pumpkin
On the plate as a side….
Sure! That would be just fine. And adorable too!
Ahhhh!! I found my first stuffed pumpkin through Twitter a few weeks ago and can’t get it off my mind (which is why I am procrastinating this morning by googling “Stuffed Pumpkin” instead of working!). I have a lovely little sugar pumpkin and some cream. We ate the good bread and most of the cheese already, so I need to shop again. And I love the sausage and stout additions. I’d been planning to make mine with greens and grains, but f*ck it, it would be so much better with the full sausage-cheese-bread instead.