Mahshi Qarah

• 1 pumpkin, about 9 inches in diameter
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1/2 pound ground meatlamb, beef, or veal
• 1/2 cup short- or medium-grain rice, cooked
• 23 tablespoons pine nuts
• 23 tablespoons black or golden raisins
• Salt and pepper
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon or 1/2 teaspoon allspice

1. Wash the pumpkin and, with a strong sharp knife, cut out a round lid around the stalk end of the pumpkin and lift it out.
2. Scrape inside and remove the seeds and loose fibers.
3. Make the filling.
4. Fry the onion in the oil till soft.
5. Add the meat and continue to cook, crushing it with a fork and stirring until it changes color.
6. Add the rest of the ingredients (the pine nuts may be toasted or fried till lightly colored) and fill the pumpkin.
7. Put the lid on, place it on a baking sheet, and bake for at least an hour in a 375F oven, until it feels soft when you press.
8. Bring to the table and serve hot, cut into generous slices, each topped with stuffing.
9. Replace the rice filling with bulgur pilaf with raisins and pine nuts (page 368).
10. Sprinkle a little sugar inside to sweeten the flesh before filling the pumpkin.

pumpkin, onion, vegetable oil, ground, rice, nuts, black, salt, cinnamon

Taken from www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/mahshi-qarah-373500 (may not work)