An Easy Tip for Carving a Pumpkin

Don't bother with those "Pumpkin Carving Sets" in the seasonal aisle of your grocery store, they are way to flimsy, and besides, you probably have one of these excellent pumpkin carving tools in your garage.  If you have access to a few used reciprocating saw (Sawzall) blades, the tapered version in the top illustration makes an excellent (if somewhat McGuiver style) pumpkin carving tool.  To protect kids delicate hands, I wrap the top third with a few wraps of thick tape such as electrical or duct.  The nice thing about sawzall blades, other than the price, is that the teeth are generally pretty dull even when new.  If you happen to have a "keyhole" saw (sometimes called a drywall saw), these also make excellent carving tools and are certainly more ergonomic.  Whatever you do, under no circumstances should you use a chef's knife or other kitchen knife, it's way to easy to end up in the E.R.  If you must use a kitchen knife, use a serrated knife like a bread or steak knife.