stuffing gourd

An annual, 3m or more high, climbing by tendrils, with leaves up to 20cm across, divided into from five to ten lance-shaped green lobes, panicles 10-20cm long of greenish white male flowers about 5mm across, and solitary greenish white female flowers, followed by green fruits, 5-15cm long, which are edible and eaten as a vegetable, either raw when young or cooked when mature after removing the seeds