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While the original carved veg lanterns were turnips, we’d recommend sticking to pumpkins for your Halloween decor. (We’ve tried turnips: It’s hard work and that turnip smell really lingers!) So which pumpkin to pick?
First, you should know there are two different types of pumpkins: the ones that are designed to be delicious (they’re smaller, browner and found in the vegetable section of the supermarket) and the ones that are bred to be pretty — the classic big orange pumpkin that trick-or-treat buckets are modeled after. You can carve the ones that are intended to be eaten, but don’t try eating a carving pumpkin. They’re watery, fibrous and have very little flavour.
Bigger supermarkets are likely to have perfectly nice pumpkins for carving, but if you’ve got the means to get to a pick-your-own farm, it’s a fun day out choosing just the right gourd out of a field of contenders.
These PYO farms aren’t too far from SW17, but you may need to book in advance this year:
- Garson’s in Esher
- Crockford Bridge Farm in Weybridge
- Tulley’s Farm in Crawley
- Secretts in Milford
- Four Winds Farm in Tunbridge Wells
- Priory Farm in Redhill
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Once you’ve picked your pumpkin, what’s next? First, get your supplies ready. Here’s where it gets messy…
What you’ll need:
- the pumpkin (or turnip!)
- a sharp kitchen knife
- a sturdy metal spoon
- a big bowl to collect the messy bits
- a few layers of newspaper or a plastic sheet, bin bag or recycling bag
We won’t give you step-by-step instructions on the actual carving — there are some great tutorials on YouTube that can show you what to do — but we have a few tips to offer from our years of jack-o-lantern experience:
- A sharp kitchen knife works better than the tools in those little pumpkin-carving kits, especially for cutting the lid and larger lines.
- The tiny saws in those kits are good for very detailed areas, but they take a while.
- A super-sharp craft knife/scalpel is also great for details — and can be used to scrape off just the top layer of pumpkin skin for interesting effects.
- Draw your design first in washable marker or crayon. If you’re carving with little kids, they can draw the design and then an adult can cut it out.
- Save the seeds to roast and eat!
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