Preheat the oven to 400º F. Meanwhile, using a sharp paring knife, cut the tops off of 4 mini pumpkins and remove the seeds. When removing the pumpkin tops, pop them off with your knife and gently pull at the stem so that the stem doesn’t break off. The seeds can be discarded, but they can also be reserved for roasting, much like larger pumpkin seeds. To cut the eyes into your pumpkin, make 3 cuts for each eye with the pairing knife and then pop out the triangular pieces of pumpkin. For the mouth drill a hole into the pumpkin by twirling the tip of your knife into the pumpkin until you have a mouth-sized hole.
Once the mini jack-o’-lantern bowls are cut, lightly brush olive oil over the insides and outsides of the pumpkin bottoms and tops and season with salt and pepper to taste. Bake for 30-40 minutes in a 400º oven with the tops on the pumpkins. The cook time may vary depending on the size of your pumpkins. The pumpkins are done when the inner flesh is fork tender.
Meanwhile, in a medium sized sauce pan, brown the ground beef. Once it’s cooked through, drain the fat off the beef, cover, and set aside. You can then rinse out the pan that you cooked the beef in and prepare a 10 oz box of mac ’n cheese per the package instructions. I recommend using an organic brand for this item because they tend to be lower in sodium and they’re free of artificial flavors and dyes. Gently stir the cooked beef into the mac ’n cheese once the macaroni is prepared to make Beef Mac ’n Cheese.
Finally, remove the cooked pumpkins from the oven and spoon the Beef Mac ’n Cheese into each one. Garnish with shredded cheddar and top with the pumpkin lids. Serve immediately. Note that pumpkin skin is tough, so the flesh should be eaten out of the pumpkin like a bowl and the skin should be left behind.
Recipe by Simple as That at https://simpleasthatblog.com/pumpkin-jack-n-cheese-bowls/