Over Halloween, we tried to describe pumpkin carving to our guys. Halloween, as I've said, isn't really a thing over here, so it was kind of difficult. Finally, Taib figured out what we were asking for and brought us what they consider a pumpkin (it was really more like a very large orange gourd). Anyway, this "pumpkin" has been sitting in the kitchen since Halloween.
Then last night, I get called into the kitchen by a very excited Nadine and our chef. Chef Muhammad has lopped off the top of the pumpkin, scraped out the insides and is showing the thing off like a trophy. He hands it to me, asking in mumbled Arabic if I want him to remove more of the flesh inside. "No, it's ok," I say. Aaron grabs my pocket knife, Lindsey grabs a marker, Tasha grabs a camera, and pumpkin carving ensues.
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| Lindsey drew a face on it, but didn't trust herself to slice through an inch of pumpkin flesh without cutting herself. The guys kept trying to give me a bigger knife, but I was content with my tiny, dull pocketknife. |
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| They told me to smile, so I pulled a Faith Galik. :) |
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| Only now do I realize I should have started singing "Pumpkin Head Harvey", but I'm pretty sure no one would have known it. |
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| Our completed pumpkin. The guys were excited to see it in action and were happy simply because we were happy. |
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| The best part is that the only candles we had were ones that spelled out "happy birthday". Because of that, we sang "happy birthday" to the pumpkin once it was lit. It's the little things that keep us sane around here. |
Muhammad made a FABULOUS pumpkin dish with the insides. It's definitely not like an American pumpkin. I'd make it more akin to spaghetti squash, since it fell apart into small slices in your mouth and didn't have a ton of flavor on its own.
Kitten was back this afternoon and spent most of it on my back while I photographed. It was the only way I could keep her off the blocks. She just cuddled into my neck and purred and purred and purred. Oh dear.
