Pumpkin and beer go so well together that brewers such as the Witney-based Wychwood Brewery actually make a pumpkin beer for the autumn. It is so popular that it sells out quickly, but pumpkins don’t roll out of the shops quite so rapidly. There are usually loads available at a greatly reduced price at this time of the year, if you know where to look. In some outlets, giant pumpkins can now be bought for as little as £1.50, leaving you with money over for a bottle of beer to go with it. Besides tasting good, pumpkins are good for us, as the flesh is high in fibre and beta-carotene and the seeds are full of zinc and essential fatty acids.

This hard-skinned vegetable, which strictly speaking is classified as a berry, is highly prized by chefs, who recognise its ability to take on whatever flavours are mixed with it. This means that it makes an ideal vegetable to add to a curry or a tomato-based stew.

Roasting pumpkin flesh that has been cut into cubes and placed alongside the Sunday roast works very well.

Pumpkin flesh makes a tasty soup. Try adding a cooking apple to create a pumpkin and apple soup. The acidity of the apple brings out the flavour of the pumpkin flesh perfectly.

Try stirring puréed pumpkin flesh into pasta, adding a few small cubes of roast pumpkin and chopped marjoram too – this is a cheap and easy way to feed the family.

Mix together cubes of pumpkin, carrots, potatoes with a few shallots and marjoram, and roast together in a little oil as the main vegetable.

Wash the seeds, and gently toast in a heavy-bottomed frying pan, sprinkle with a little salt once they have turned brown and serve with a glass of real ale.