Have you carved your pumpkins? Did you save and roast the seeds to snack on this week?Rich in magnesium and zinc they also offer calcium, iron, phosphorus, potassium, copper and manganese as well as a little bit of vitamin A. A healthy snack to be sure!
The good thing about roasted pumpkin seeds is that you can add whatever spices you like to personalize them to your own tastes. The basic idea of roasting is simple... what you do with it is up to you!
Cut open your pumpkin and either carve your jack-o-lantern or if you are using baking pumpkins to make your own pumpkin pie filling, do so, but save the seeds from the inside.Removing the fibers, place all the seeds into a bowl or colander. Rinse well. Rinse again. And again to remove all the pieces of pumpkin and fibers.
On a foil lined, greased baking sheet spread the seeds out in a single layer.
You can use a couple tablespoons of butter, a bit of oil, or if you want to do 'quick and easy' as I do, I use a baking spray to simple spray the seeds with a light layer of canola oil.
Your first batch, you may want to a basic roasted seed, which is done by simply adding salt. That's it. Just salt! Season to taste and place into an oven set to about 300 degrees. Roast for an hour, using a wooden or metal spoon to stir every 15 - 20 minutes or so.
You'll see the seeds start to become dull and turn golden brown.
Continue baking until they have lost their shine, are golden brown and crisp. They will continue to crisp up a bit while they cool. When they are completely cool, transfer to a container to store in the cupboard.
Other spices some people like to add include cayenne pepper, seasoned salt, garlic salt, onion salt, dry ranch dressing or Italian dressing mixes or onion powder, or even going to a sweet/salty mix with a sugar and salt mixture.
