The genus Cucurbita has its origin in America. The first manifestations of the pumpkin are said to have existed as early as 10.000 BC. in America. At first it was grown as an intermediate crop in the maize fields and used as fodder.The corn grows upwards while the pumpkin spreads on the ground. The pumpkin was used as a staple food by the cultures of the Aztecs, Mayas and Incas.After America has been “discovered” the pumpkin was imported from Southern Mexico to Europe at the beginning of the 16th century. Today pumpkins are a popular vegetable food in Europe and also Asia.
However the Styrian oil pumpkin (lat. Cucurbita pepo var. styriaca respectively var. oleifera) is a mutant pumpkin. The characateristics of this special variety of pumpkins are its shell-free kernels. (see special feature of the Styrian oil pumpkin).
The oil pumpkin is annual and monoecious, which means that both sexes are on the same plant. It spreads out on the ground, a shallow root, and has large yellow funnel-shaped flowers that are also popular in the kitchen. It thrives especially on sandy-loamy soils, in a climate of warmth and moisture.
Since the plant is very sensitive to frost, it can be damaged by persistent cool summer weather below 10 °C. The pumpkins grow relatively quickly, they can gain several centimeters over the night alone. The tendrils can also grow up to 15 cm in length in one day. On average, a ripe oil pumpkin weighs 8 – 10 kilograms. As a young pumpkin it is dark green, but then turns more and more towards yellow-orange.
Special feature of the Styrian oil pumpkin
The special thing about this oil pumpkin is that the shells of the kernels are not lignified, the kernels are only surrounded by a thin membrane. This gives the seeds a soft consistency, which enables the unique pumpkin seed oil to be pressed efficiently. This mutation of the nuclei occurred around 1880 in the South of Styria. In the meantime, the pumpkin seed has been further bred, so that today it is a thick-bellied, soft-skinned, dark green core and offers the perfect prerequisite for the high-quality pumpkin seed oil.
Breeding and varieties of Styrian oil pumpkin
Most of the current range of oil pumpkins in Austria comes from the Gleisdorf seed breeding company. This plant breeding company offers the traditional varieties ‚Gleisdorfer Ölkürbis‘ and ‚GL Classic‘. The following hybrid varieties of Gleisdorf Saatzucht have also been successfully grown for a number of years: ‚GL Maja‘, ‚GL Opal‘, ‚GL Oskar‘, ‚GL Planet‘ and ‚GL Rustikal‘. The preservation of the cultivar breeding at the Gleisdorf location is the most important and essential factor for the success of the Styrian oil pumpkin and the Styrian pumpkin seed oil PGI. at all. Only in this way was it possible to research this cultivated plant really well and to react quickly to all challenges.
Neither the upstream basic research by universities nor the downstream seed trade would have been able to provide this knowledge and this work over the many decades. Then the many years of experience with oil pumpkin and vegetable pumpkin by the Western Styrian experimental station Wies (the Office for Agriculture and Forestry in Styria) should also be mentioned. The oil pumpkin variety ‚Wies 371‘ is named after this breeding station.
And finally, the Upper Austrian Saatbau Linz has taken over the early ‚Beppo‘ variety from New Zealand. Today Saatbau Linz produces hybrid seeds of this variety in Austria. ‚Beppo‘ goes back to an export of the peel-free pumpkin to New Zealand in the 1960s, which was crossed there with other pumpkin varieties. ‚Beppo‘ already made up a quarter of the Austrian pumpkin acreage in 2017. The ‚Camillo‘ variety has also been newly developed, but there is still no relevant cultivation area on it.
Pumpkin protein – Characteristics
In addition to the well-known soy, rice, pea, hemp, lupine or sunflower proteins, pumpkin seed protein is one of the purely vegetable protein powders. Pumpkin seed protein is not only important in terms of its high-quality vegan protein content.
Did you know that pumpkin seeds contain iron?
The pumpkin seed protein is also very valuable due to the many valuable vital substances such as fiber, magnesium, manganese, potassium or phosphorus. This multitude of healthy micronutrients has a positive effect on your organism: less fatigue, no flatulence, accelerated metabolism, better performance in sports, generally improved well-being, etc..
- pumpkin seed protein is vegan, lactose-free, gluten-free, nut-free, hypoallergenic and is easy to digest
- in addition, pumpkin seed protein has a high biological value – an ideal superfood for athletes!
Why Pumpkin protein powder
The natural pumpkin seed protein provides your organism with valuable nutrients such as amino acids, antioxidants, fiber, minerals (especially magnesium, iron & zinc) as well as vitamins and omega-6 & omega-9 fatty acids. This superfood is particularly interesting in terms of 3 aspects:
- pumpkin seed protein is a real bomb of vital substances
- 100% hypoallergenic and easy to absorb
- versatile
Advantages of Pumpkin Protein powder
- Rich in vital substances thanks to gentle production This purely natural pumpkin seed protein is made from sustainably grown and GMO-free pumpkins from Austria. The pumpkin seeds used are not processed industrially. The delicious, nutty pumpkin seed aroma, on the other hand, is carefully controlled by hand in a wood-fired roasting process. Pumpkin seed superfood is a real nutrient bomb and therefore promotes vitality, well-being and effectiveness. Pumpkin seed protein offers 60% protein and provides 19% premium quality BCAA.
- A hypoallergenic superfood Pumpkin seed protein is vegan, lactose-free, gluten-free, nut-free and is easy to digest. The product contains all essential amino acids, is rich in fiber and has a large number of vitamins, minerals (especially magnesium, zinc and iron), enzymes and antioxidants. In addition to the pumpkin seed protein amino acids, pumpkin seed protein is a valuable source of omega-6 and omega-9 fatty acids. All of these important nutrients can be easily processed by the organism. It is free from artificial additives, flavor enhancers, or preservatives. This hypoallergenic natural product is an absolutely high-quality, purely plant-based fitness food.
- Pumpkin seed protein – high biological value Biological value describes how well a dietary protein can be converted into an endogenous protein. The chicken egg is the reference protein. A biological value of 100 is assigned to it. The biological value of whey protein with approx. 104 even beats the hen’s egg. Now comes our pumpkin seed protein! The biological value of it is even 137 and clearly beats its opponents.
- Fitness food with a wide range of uses As a result, this product offers an excellent basis for a healthy diet and is ideally suited as an ingredient for the production of delicious pumpkin seed protein recipes, low-carb products and baked goods (as a flour substitute). From shakes and smoothies to yoghurt and muesli to the refinement of soups and sauces, for breading and baking bread, pancakes, muffins or cakes, this product, like Athletic Body Sculpt, can be used in a variety of ways to enrich meals with meaningful nutrients in a natural way .
Application, taste & consistency
Natural, aromatic taste The taste of pumpkin seed protein is nutty with roasted aromas and is strongly reminiscent of pumpkin seed oil. If this protein is too intense for you, you can mix it well with other proteins such as rice or lupine protein and create your own personal protein powder Solubility Vegan proteins are more difficult to mix than whey proteins, and this is also the case with pumpkin seed protein powder.
It also settles again very quickly after being stirred. A good blender helps here, mixing you a lump-free smoothie and mixing the pumpkin seed protein powder perfectly. Recommended application Mix 2-3 tablespoons daily with natural water, rice milk, almond milk, muesli, yoghurt or smoothies. Also ideal as a cooking ingredient for, among other things, vegetable dishes and low-carb baked goods (flour substitute), for refining soups and sauces or for breading.
Important if you buy pumpkin seed protein
It is best to make sure that you buy an organic quality product. In addition, it should of course be free from genetic engineering. Knowing about the origin is also an advantage. Pumpkin seeds don’t necessarily have to come to us from the other end of the world. Sustainable cultivation of the raw materials is also important. Make sure to also take a look at the ingredients and see how high the protein content is.
If possible, additives should also not be present. Really good providers describe their product in a completely transparent manner when they have nothing to hide. The taste is generally pleasant and nutty, but it may well be that you first have to make your own pumpkin seed protein experience in order to find the right product for you after a test.
The Styrian pumpkin oil – an export commodity of Austria and Slovenia – is made by pressing roasted, hull-less pumpkin seeds from a local variety of pumpkin, the „Styrian oil pumpkin“ (Cucurbita pepo subsp. pepo var. ’styriaca‘, also known as var. oleifera). High-temperature roasting improves the aromatic quality of pumpkin seed oil.
