Need a hearty and delicious dish to feed your family this Halloween? I’ve got you covered with this Pumpkin Stew with mashed Potatoes. My kids love celebrating Halloween and spooky food is an important part of this celebration. This special pumpkin stew is the meal my kids look forward to each fall.
Just a few ingredients combine to create a dish of pure comfort: meat, vegetables, aromatics and a quick béchamel sauce. The base for this recipe is beef stew meat. To start the cooking process, brown the meat in a pot with olive oil. Once the meat is in the oven, it simmers down to tender perfection. As for the veggies, I opt for pumpkin to add seasonal flavor to the dish. I also add frozen peas for a pop of color. To build flavor, this recipe relies on onions, garlic and tomato paste. For the béchamel sauce, you will need butter, flour, beef broth and milk. The béchamel binds all the ingredients together and makes the dish creamy and rich. Topping the stew with mashed potato ghosts takes this classic comfort dish to a whole new level of creepy. It’s an easy way to entice picky eaters to eat something other than Halloween sweets.
To make the Pumpkin Stew with mashed Potatoes, you will need the following ingredients:
In a large pot, put 4 peeled and chopped potatoes and cover them with water. Bring to a boil and cook until fork-tender.
Drain the potatoes and mash them. Add ½ cup whole milk, 2 ounces cream cheese, 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, and kosher salt and black pepper to taste and mix until smooth.
Preheat the oven to 375 °F.
In a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and add the beef. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Brown the meat on all sides.
Add in 3 ½ cups cubed pumpkin, 1 chopped onion, and 2 minced garlic cloves and cook until softened, about 10 minutes.
Add ¼ cup tomato paste and mix to combine. Cook for another 1-2 minutes.
Transfer the beef mixture to a large bowl. Set aside.
Return the pot to the stove. Reduce the heat to medium-low and add 1 tablespoon butter. Once the butter has melted, add ¼ cup all-purpose flour and cook, whisking constantly, about 1 minute.
Add in 1 ½ cups low-sodium beef broth and ½ cup whole milk and whisk until thickened, about 5 minutes.
Add the beef mixture back into the pot. Add 1 cup frozen peas and stir to combine.
Spoon the mixture into a large oven-proof cast-iron skillet or baking dish.
Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender and the sauce is bubbling. Carefully remove the dish from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
Spoon the mashed potatoes into a pastry bag or plastic bag with the end snipped off. Pipe the mashed potatoes in the shape of a ghost on top of the stew. Garnish with the peas to make eyes and add ketchup for some blood.
Serve and enjoy!
This Pumpkin Stew with mashed Potatoes is easy to prepare and will please all the little monsters and witches at your dinner table. Did you make this recipe? We'd love to see! Tag us on Instagram @cookmerecipes and use the hashtag #cookmerecipes. We'll reshare our favorites.
This Pumpkin Stew is lit! My kids went nuts for it during spooky season. Super easy to whip up, and those mashed potato ghosts? So fun! Perfect for getting my littles to eat their veggies. Yay!
Wow! My kids gobbled this up faster than Halloween candy!
Super great stew! My kids love gobblin' it up every Halloween. It’s hearty and perfect for chilly nights. Definitely a fall favorite to enjoy together.
Hice este guiso de calabaza para Halloween y a mis amigos les encantó. ¡Es delicioso y muy fácil de prepararlo!
I made this Pumpkin Stew with Mashed Potatoes for my family this Halloween, and it was a hit! My kids loved the spooky potato ghosts. The flavors were superb and so comforting. It has become a fall tradition in our house. Thank you for sharing this wonderful recipe that feeds the family and ignites the holiday spirit.
Amazing!
This stew is a family favorite! My kids love the spooky mashed potato ghosts.
OMG, this stew was a total hit! My kids gobbled it up, especially the spooky potato ghosts! So easy and delish!
