Recently, a f riend off-handedly mentioned that "everyone's out of pumpkin, you know.  There's a national shortage."  I didn't know, actually!  

As a big fan of pumpkin bread, pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup, and pumpkin muffins, you would think I would have noticed. In fact, I hardly believed her, and had to look it up myself.  But it's true: America is experiencing an unprecedented shortage of pumpkin.

At grocery stores nationwide, the pumpkin puree spot on the shelves lies empty.  Most of us probably won't notice until fall (when the market for pumpkin-based foods starts cranking up for the season).  Those who need pumpkin immediately are having to turn to alternatives, or simply do without.

This recent article from the Washington Post explains the situation.   Libby's, the nation's primary producer of canned pumpkin puree, has an inventory that totals precisely: six cans.  

The problem is weather.  Three years of bad weather has pushed the commercial pumpkin crop to its breaking point.  The record rainfall and flooding in the Midwest has caused pumpkin fields to become all but impossible to plant and harvest.  

And to compound the problem, pumpkins are a crop that do not like to get overly wet.  In fact, here in the Pacific Northwest it's taken as a given that pumpkin plants will fall prey to powdery mildew and other "too wet" diseases.  The question is whether it will happen before or after you get your pumpkins harvested.

So what's a pumpkin-hungry public to do?

1.  Go Pumpkin Hunting!
A lot of small local outfits have not experienced the weather problems the Midwest has been faced with.  The Washington Post article mentions that there is a local organic pumpkin company which has canned pumpkin in some Washington DC stores.  

Local growers will be bringing fresh pie pumpkins to market starting in August (depending on your part of the country).  Look for local farms, scour the classifieds, and stalk the farmer's markets.   Be sure to ask if it's a pie pumpkin - you don't want to try and make muffins out of a carving pumpkin!

2.   Substitute
Butternut squash is functionally the same plant as the pie pumpkin.  Butternut squash can be cooked and pureed just like pie pumpkins, and used in squash, tortellini, pies, and everything else a pumpkin can.

Sweet potatoes are another good substitute for canned pumpkin.  If you don't have the patience (or the kitchen equipment) to cook and puree a butternut squash, sweet potatoes are a little easier.  Simply cut a sweet potato into chunks, cook at a medium boil for about half an hour (or until the chunks are soft to the fork).  Drain and let it cool, then mash them up with a fork.

Either butternut squash or sweet potatoes can be used to make pie, with judicious applications of pumpkin pie spice.  I also found this incredibly delicious-looking recipe for Sweet Potato Buttermilk Pie at Smitten Kitchen, which should quiet the qualms of any pumpkin pie aficionados!

According to Wikibooks, you can substitute a puree of carrot, swede, and yogurt for pumpkin puree.  Frankly, I'm skeptical about that claim, but I include it here for the sake of completeness.

Photo credit: Flickr/elana's pantry