Dulces De Calabasas (Mexican Pumpkin Candy) - cooking recipe

Ingredients

2 lbs whole pumpkin (1-2 small, 1 qt. when chopped)
water
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves (optional)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
granulated sugar

Preparation

Cut pumpkin in half, remove seeds and as much of the \"stringy stuff\" as you can, and chop into pieces approximately 1-1.5 inches by 1.5-2.5 inches.
Slice off skin, taking off as little flesh as you can.
Measure to make sure you have approximately one quart of pumpkin pieces (either pack well into a measuring cup or fill a calibrated 1/2 gallon or 1 gallon measure to the quart line and drop in pieces until water hits the 1/2 gallon line, then drain water.).
Put in a fairly heavy saucepan and cover with water.
Cover, bring to a boil, and boil for 15-20 minutes.
Drain, but save water, and place pumpkin back in pan.
Measure water to make sure you have about 1 1/2 cups.
Stir in packed brown sugar until smooth. Add cloves and/or cinnamon at this point, if desired.
Pour the sugar/water syrup over the pumpkin, cover, return to a boil, and boil another 15 minutes.
Turn off heat and let sit overnight (at least 8 hours.) This is how the pumpkin soaks up the syrup and \"candies\".
In the morning (or after the 8-10 hours), return to a boil, and boil an additional 5 minutes.
Remove from syrup with a slotted spoon and place on a tray or cookie sheet lined with waxed paper.
Allow to dry at least 10-12 hours in a place where it will not be disturbed (if you're not going to be using the oven and haven't had it on recently, the cold oven is a great place to keep it safe.).
Roll in granulated sugar and enjoy! Place in air-tight container to store up to two weeks.