From dressing up as Disney princesses during my childhood, to crazy nights throughout the weeklong celebrations in college, Halloween has always been my favorite holiday of the year. With candy in the spotlight, pumpkin often gets overlooked as a great Halloween food, but these orange gourds are versatile and delicious, available in Beijing in dishes both sweet and savory, Eastern and Western.

Mosto is offering scrumptious pumpkin ravioli (¥145) on their fall menu. These pumpkin pockets are infused with sage butter, garnished with hazelnuts and topped with goat cheese foam. I’m skeptical when a bowl of foam arrives on my plate, but Chef Daniel Urdaneta never ceases to amaze me with bold flavors. The dish was very sweet when I tried it on the first night of the fall menu, but I was told the marzipan-like qualities would be toned down.

For those who really have an irrepressible sweet tooth, I suggest ordering Lollipop Bakery’s flavor of the month—pumpkin spice (¥220 per dozen). These pumpkin desserts are the ideal combination of sugar, spice and everything nice, with the perfect amount of pumpkin and cinnamon. This month, you can also get their Halloween cupcake box (¥340 per dozen), which is perfect for any festive costume party.

Lollipop Bakery's Set of Fall Flavor

Indian Kitchen has a most delectable prawn and pumpkin curry (¥52), offered during the fall on their buffet or by special order. This curry is meant to be eaten with soft naan bread and has a sultry soft texture with bubbling Indian spices which process one after another—a hint of turmeric, a dash of coriander and a blip of chili zing. General manager Moveen explained to me that pumpkin is actually very popular in southern India, and these dishes are for both the everyday workman lunch and holiday festivities.

LAN Club has a special pumpkin soup (¥68) year-round that is actually served in a pumpkin. It scores points for beautiful presentation and unique tastes, with a naturally sweet broth filled with hints of savory abalone, peas and herbs. It’s a nice spin on a classic Cantonese dessert, innovated to please both the eye and the palate.

For more local Chinese tastes, there is xiandan huangju nangua, which are basically sweet pumpkin fries, deep-fried in a salty egg batter. This dish can be found at most typical Chinese restaurants, but I order it at Ji Xiang Niao Xiang Cai, since it’s the perfect dish to play off all the Hunan spice.

Though I’m looking forward to all the costumes, candy and Halloween parties, I’m even happier to have discovered different pumpkin dishes that are available this fall.