Chinese Food Recipe: Pumpkin Glutinous rice

Soak the glutinous rice and the lotus seeds in cool water for 2 hours. Cut the pumpkin near the top to remove the topmost part. Spoon out the pulp and the seed. Cut the dates into thin strips. Cook the glutinous rice and the lotus seed with a steamer or an electric rice cooker. Blend the cooked rice, the sugar, the lard, the coix seed, the nuts and dried fruits. Stuff the hollowed pumpkin with the blend. Compact the stuffing. Cover back the topmost part of the pumpkin. Steam the stuffed pumpkin in the steamer with strong fire for 20-30 minutes. Take away the cover of the pumpkin and serve.