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courge2015keystone
Beni Meier and his 2015 world record-breaking pumpkin 04-10-2015     © Keystone

OK, we don't expect you to find one this big! The 2015 Swiss record for the largest pumpkin weighing in at 750kg is presented in the above photo by the tiny head peaking out from the back! The farmer responsible for this beast is again Beni Meier, from Zurich, who was unable to beat his own record for a pumpkin weighing 1,054kg which was unfortunately disqualified for having a hole in 2014. The heat wave this summer prevented the pumpkins from gaining more weight.

If you love the colors and selections of pumpkins that are avaiable today, then wait no longer! You can buy a great assortment and even make it to a festival as well. Most restaurants will be serving pumpkin soup around this time of year but see bottom of page for Lisa's recipe. 

1001 Courges

Familles Jean-Mairet-Favre

Rte de Chavornay 1

1372 Bavois, VD

024 441 41 74

079 241 19 68

www.1001courges.ch

Pumpkin-tasting and meal and all things pumpkin as well as huge sale.

 

Schilliger

Rte Suisse 40

1196 Gland, VD

022 354 44 44

www.schilliger.com

20,000m2 garden center and boutique, see photo above for their extensive selection of pumpkins. Weekdays 9h-18h30, Saturday 8h-18h. Check-out the pumpkin competition and estimate the weight of their giant pumpkin between 15-29 October (both in Gland and Plan-les-Ouates).

 

Famille Claude et Carine Jaquier

La Grange aux Courges

Rte d'Eclagnens 7

1376 Goumoens-la-Ville, VD

021 882 20 02

079 380 10 40

www.lagrangeauxcourges.ch

Open daily from September through mid-December from 9h-19h in self-service choice and honor box payment system.

 

Ferme Courtois

Rte de la Branvaude 13
1290 Versoix, GE
022 755 43 16

www.fermecourtois.ch

Pumpkins, apples (15 varieties), fresh apple juice, flowers, and more. Open Monday and Tuesday 9h-12h and 13h30-18h, Friday 9h-18h, Saturday 9h-17h.

 

Verger St. Loup

54, rte de St. Loup

1290 Versoix, GE

022 755 60 10

www.pomme.ch

Apples (15 varieties), fresh apple and pear juices, apple cider (hard), honey, a few pumpkins, and more. NEW: They have now installed a distributor machine that is available from Monday to Saturday 8h-20h. The shop is open Tuesday to Friday 15h-18h, Saturday 10h-17h.

 

Ferme Perroud

Rte de Rombuet 148

1616 Attalens

www.selffruitsperroud.ch

The selection of pumpkins is incredible (see photo below) but they seem to be running out of the last ones so hurry! Open daily 9h-11h30 and 13h30-18h30. Out of these hours please pay with honor box system.

 

Fête de la Courge

Ouchy, VD

021 616 26 72

Saturday, 29 October, 2016

www.cpo-ouchy.ch

16h workshops for kids

17h open to the public

Free bowl of freshly-made pumpkin soup for all! There will be a parade of kids in Halloween costumes and a spooky train!

 

Self Service pumpkins (if you know of some that are not listed, please tell us)

—On the road to Chavannes Centre near Commugny (nearly all gone at this date)

—Across from Media Markt in Meyrin.

—At many of the places listed above.

Pick the one you want and put the money in the honor box.

 

Manor, Migros, Coop, Carrefour, LeClerc, Aldi, and outdoor farmer's markets

Also have a selection of pumpkins for carving or for cooking. Try to get the green skinned pumpkin (a chunk not the whole thing) and using a mandolin cutter, slice as thin as you can and serve raw on salad. It is really delicious!

 

MANY MORE IDEAS

Thanks to Lausanne-Mom for a great list of ideas at this link: http://www.lausannemom.com/halloween/

 

annemiekepumpkins
© Photo taken at the Ferme Perroud by Annemieke De Koster 2013

 

pumpkins2

Halloween
October 31st. This ancient celebration has now become very popular in Switzerland. In October, you’ll find everything from costumes to candy on sale in the shops. Traditionally, kids ring the doorbell and you give them some candy/sweets. Pumpkins can be bought at supermarkets, garden centers, or outdoor markets. Most kids will only ring the bell of houses or appartments that have some kind of Halloween decoration. It is best to have some sweets and candies on hand.


headless
COSTUMES / FANCY DRESS
You will find many shops have already put out some outfits including supermarkets. There are some specialty costume shops in the area:

A. Bugnon
Ch. du Petit-Flon 24
1052 Mont-sur-Lausanne
021 647 76 19
www.abugnon.ch/costumes

Theater costumes for rent. Open weekdays except Wednesday from 13h30-18h30, Saturday 9h-12h.

Ballon-Muller Diffusion
Centre New Adoc
1029 Villars-Ste-Croix
021 633 50 55
http://ballon-muller.ch/prestashop/3100-costumes
Big selection of party items and costumes. Can be ordered online or check out their stock at the shop. 

La Drolerie pour la Fête
Les Arcades d’Ornex
65, rue des Bois
01210 Ornex
France
0033/450 40 81 00
www.ladrolerie.fr
Costumes, piñatas, masks, fireworks, bouncy castles and trampolines for rent. Open Tuesday to Friday 9h-12h30 and 15h-19h30, Saturday 9h-18h30.

La Gaité
13, rue de la Rôtisserie
1204 Genève
022 311 87 08
www.lagaite.ch
Costumes for sale.

Ludotheques
www.ludo.ch
Rent costumes for parties here. Locations all over Switzerland.

La Mascarade
2, rue des Rois
1204 Genève
022 329 17 00
www.lamascarade.ch
Costumes and tuxedos for age 2 to adult for rental.

La Paternelle
Ch. de la Chocolatière 2
1030 Bussigny-près-Lausanne
021 701 52 82
www.paternelle.ch/costumes
More than 5,000 costumes and accessories for rent, indexed for easy sorting.


Lisa's recipe for the best pumpkin soup

  • Any combination of pumpkin, butternut squash, sweet potato, etc.
  • Cut into even size pieces and coat with olive oil and salt.
  • Roast in hot oven 200°C for about 1 hour.
  • Heat a little olive oil, onions, garlic, celery leaves (if you have some) on your stovetop in a deep pan with lid. 
  • Add salt and pepper to taste
  • Take cooked pumpkin pieces and add to pan.
  • Cover with boiling water.
  • Add as much whole chorizo sausage (peel skin first) as you like and let cook for about 20 minutes.
  • Remove sausage.
  • Add some cream to soup.
  • Purée soup.
  • Chop chorizo into bite size pieces and return to soup.
  • Serve and enjoy with a thick piece of toasted crusty bread and a dollop of cream.