• in a pot (French oven) saute three shallots in butter and olive oil
• add dried mushrooms and stir
• add peppers trio and stir
• add garlic confit and stir
• add black rice and stir
• add layer of halved plums
• finely chop giblets and add them to this layer
• add four rosemary twigs
• drizzle honey
• butterfly whole chicken and spice in and out with:
  • salt
  • cayenne
  • sumac
  • coriander
  • cardamom
  • expert level:  spread spices under the skin
• drizzle over chicken a bit more honey
• cover and put in the oven 350f for 60 minutes
• uncover for another 15 minutes on broil to brown

I could have probably used two bags of rice for this volume.

Also, might be good to stir the rice mixture (including stirring the plums in) midway through the roasting process.  In other words, life the chicken and stir what’s below together again.  This may mean leaving out the rosemary (which seems to play only a small role) or perhaps moving it to the top during roasting (and removing before broiling).

Following loosely this video:

I am using 129f and will come in at about eleven hours (because sleep).  Added salt, pepper, and cayenne as usual.

Ingredients:

• 1 decent sized pumpkin with lid removed and inside cleaned
• sauté
  • 1 onion chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper chopped
  • 12? cloves garlic chopped
  • handful of dried bing cherries chopped
• deglaze
  • 1/4 cup? pomegranate molasses
  • 1/4 cup? white wine
• remove to mixing bowl (leaving liquid behind)
• sauté after reducing retained liquid
  • 10 maybe mushrooms (let them fully wilt)
  • 1 lb sweet Italian sausage
• remove to mixing bowl
• 1 cup black rice with 3.5 cups chicken stock 5 minutes boil and simmer to finish, then add to mixing bowl
• finally add the rest to the mixing bowl
  • 1/4 cup? Asiago
  • coriander, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg
  • 2 apples chopped
  • lemon juice
  • cream
  • sage
• mix everything and stuff the pumpkin

450f for 30 minutes and then 350f for another 90 minutes

I ended up with too much liquid after cooking and would reduce the amount of liquid used (or reduce the rice liquid more) for the next cook.

Pumpkin seeds

• sauté in olive oil
• add salt, cayenne, and butter
• 300f oven 45 minutes

These turned out amazing for being so simple.

Gutting the pumpkin (and then salvaging the seeds) was a bit of a pain in the ass.  I used an ice cream scoop for gutting the pumpkin which did a fair job for most of it.  I may try using a serrated knife for removing the lid next time, though I suspect my dreams of sawing around are folly.

The flavor combination of the stuffing was amazing and I wouldn’t hope to alter it one bit.  Just maybe reducing the final liquidity some.

Have fun!