Though the most popular use for these is for centerpieces and fall decorations, they have a sweet winter-squash flesh with a thin skin—meaning that you can eat the whole thing (minus the bottom, the stem, and the seeds).
The first time I saw one of these at dinner was when I had Daniel Humm's tasting menu at Campton Place. The pumpkin had the seeds scooped out and was filled with the most delicious pumpkin soup imaginable. (Just thinking about this meal makes me jealous of all the New Yorkers who can now go to Eleven Madison Park where Daniel moved in January 2006). If you want to do something special with these Lilliputian pumpkins, The New York Times recently published a recipe for Baby Pumpkins With Seafood which filled the hollowed-out and roasted pumpkin with a rich scallop-cheese sauce. I think that's what I am going to do with mine. It will give me an excuse to open one of my bottles of Aubert chardonnay. (Not that I normally need an excuse.)
P.S. The real Farmer's Market Product(s) of the Week were strawberries (Catalán Family Farm), Italian basil (Chue's Farm), and tomatoes (Balakian Farms). Normally, these things aren't unusual in the least, but to find them fresh and from the field on November 29th strikes me as highly unusual. Alas, though I had my camera with me, the battery was dead and you are going to have to take my word that California is truly an agricultural paradise.
Did the pumpkin phone home?