Stop Throwing Out Your Empty Pie Pumpkin

Some restaurants use unconventional serveware to add an extra flair to their dishes. The Mine Bistro in the U.K. commits to its mining theme by serving meals on shovels, per Wales Online. In LA, the bathroom-themed Magic Restroom Cafe (yes, really) serves meals in miniature toilet bowls (via Eater). Now, home cooks can get creative with their own creative serveware to take any dinner party to the next level.

For seasonal serveware that wows, try reusing that emptied-out pie pumpkin as a soup bowl. Can anyone say piping hot butternut squash soup in a literal pumpkin bowl? It doesn't get more fall-fever than this. Or, if you aren't quite ready to dive into soup season just yet, your pumpkin bowl can also be used for several other dishes. Try it out as a serving bowl for Thanksgiving stuffing or for a veggie dip at your next fall picnic. You can even use it for passing out candy to trick-or-treaters on Halloween. Here's how to elevate your empty pie pumpkin from the discard pile to the star of the show.

When you're cruising down the aisles at the grocery store, the prettiness of those ingredients on the shopping list might be the last thing on your mind. But, when it comes to crowd-pleasing serving, appearances count. Start by selecting a pie pumpkin with an aesthetically-pleasing, blemish-free exterior, suggests Pumpkin Nook. Plus, not only do bruises and discolorations make your pumpkin bowl, well, not as cute, but they can also be indicators of rot or disease, says Premeditated Leftovers. Steer clear of anything that doesn't look quite right; uniformity is the name of the game here.

To make your pumpkin food safe, says Today, give it a good wash and dry. Premeditated Leftovers recommends lukewarm water and dish soap. Next, carve and scoop out the insides if you haven't already — at this point, you can go ahead and roast those seeds too. Then, reach inside the pumpkin and coat the walls with olive oil and light salt. To roast, set your prepped pumpkin on a baking sheet and pop it in the oven at 350 degrees for roughly 25 minutes, per Today. After cooling, your pumpkin bowl is ready to add seasonal flair to any dinner table faster than you can say, "soup's on."