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Rating: 5 stars This is a neat recipe! The recipe doesn't give enough instructions though for non-experienced cooks, so here you go . . . cover the stew while it's being cooked on the stove, otherwise the liquid will cook off. Also, place the pumpkin top back on the pumpkin after it's filled, make sure the pumpkin stem is wet, and then cover the stem with tin foil. Thumb Up Helpful (290)

Rating: 5 stars This was fabulous! I doubled the recipe for a party and used an 11 lb. French cooking pumpkin. I made the stew Friday night and baked it Saturday. It came out wonderful and the leftovers just got better and beter. Served with a crusty french bread to complete! Thanks for this great recipe - I will make it again. Thumb Up Helpful (66)

Rating: 5 stars this was great! stew tasted yummy and it looked awesome:) i didn't quite fill the pumpkin to the top with the stew when i took it out of the oven it was full - must be it filled the rest of the way with the pumpkin juice. very good recipe! thank you! Thumb Up Helpful (50)

Rating: 5 stars I had a 5 person Thanksgiving party this year and decided t try this recipe. Made stew in 5 small individual pumpkins and they were a HUGE HIT. I was nervous about how everything would turn out but I followed other's suggestions and it was such a success. A few notes.. 1.) Instead of 1 large 10-12 lbs pumpkin I used 5 small organic sugar pumpkins. Extends prep time but the presentation is amazing and your guests will be amazed! Rubbed pumpkin pie spice on inside of hallowed out pumpkin before pouring stew and baking. 2.) Additional ingredients: Sliced celery (adds flavor!) corn cut green beans & portabella mushroom. Very hearty. 3.) Reduced salt by 1/2 4.) Wet stems & cover with foil when bakiing. DO NOT overbake. I baked for only 1 hour 15 min. 5.) Sprinkled freshly grated Parmesean Reggiano and toasted spiced pumpkin seeds (collected from the pumpkins)on top of each stew right before serving. Comfort food folks! Wonderful. Thumb Up Helpful (47)

Rating: 3 stars We thought that this had a very pretty presentation. The idea is wonderful. The stew....not so great. It lacked in flavor and seasonings. May try this again another time but first time was not a hit. Thumb Up Helpful (25)

Rating: 5 stars This has to be one of the best recipes I have ever seen for a party or large dinner party. I have made it twice and it is always a huge hit. People are blown away by the presentation and taste. Five stars all around. As others have noted the directions are a bit sketchy. Cover the stew while cooking on the stove and the pumpkin's top while in the oven. Also feel free to add nearly anything you like to the beef stew. I increased the vegetable count some. Just make sure that you do not add so much that the resulting stew no longer fits inside the pumpkin you have. About the pumpkin: I have no idea where you would find a 12 pound sugar pumpkin but it would not work. You need a standard "jack-o-lantern" pumpkin. A jack-o-lantern pumpkin contains quite a bit of water; making it unsuitable for use in most recipes. But the stew you create in the first part of this recipe is too thick on its own. However when you move it into the pumpkin to finish cooking the water from the pumpkin fixes that problem and adds a wonderful flavor as well. Thumb Up Helpful (24)

Rating: 4 stars Being cajun I couldn't resist changing the recipe just a bit. I added 1/2 more pound of beef 12 oz. of "Texas Pete Seafood Cocktail Sauce and more salt than the recipe calls for. I also boiled the potatoes and carrots for 30 min. before following the recipe(I actually could have cooked them longer). I also didn't serve in the pumpkin but scooped everything into a large bowl. the pumpkin was delicious and the stew was better than that. Thumb Up Helpful (22)

Rating: 5 stars I made this last fall... several times!! It is soooooooo yummy. It makes an amazing presentation. And is full of Fiber!! I did add a handful of mushrooms just because I love mushrooms. Oh how I wish there were pumpkins right now! Thumb Up Helpful (18)