1 Pumpkin, 2 Roasted Pumpkin Seed Recipes

Well I have been hanging onto my pumpkin seeds for about two weeks now since carving pumpkins for Halloween and was given an ultimatum of do something with them or toss them since they are taking up space in the fridge. I needed that extra push so I decided to do some searching and found some inspiration for a pumpkin seed recipe. I had never made them before and I saw a lot of different times/temps so I decided to wing it and just see how it went. 

I made one savory/garlic recipe and one sweet recipe each are below. I was also told the best way to roast pumpkin seeds is soak them in salt water beforehand. So I soaked the seeds in a bowl of water and table salt overnight and made these just now. 

Sweet Seed Ingredients 

• About 1 to 1 1/2 cups pumpkin seeds 
• 2 teaspoons olive oil or melted butter
• 1 tsp Cinnamon 
• 1 Tbsp Sugar
• Salt Water (for the night before roasting)

Savory Seed Ingredients

• About 1 to 1 1/2 cups pumpkin seeds 
• 2 teaspoons olive oil or melted butter
• A few pinches of each: Garlic Powder, Salt, Pepper
• Tiny sprinkle of Cayenne Pepper (if you want a little more spice/kick add more)
• Salt Water (for night before)

Directions

• Soak pumpkin seeds overnight in salt water (or during the day if you are going to do this in the evening)
• Preheat oven to 325 degrees 
• Drain seeds and toss onto paper towel. Don't need to be completely dry but not dripping wet.
• Place about half your seeds into a baking dish and the other half of your seeds into a separate baking dish. I used two cake pans.
• Drizzle seeds with olive oil or melted butter, add seasonings to savory seeds and sugar/cinnamon to sweet seeds, stir (use two separate spoons/spatulas so you don't mix up your flavors), and shake or pat seeds so they are in roughly a single layer

• Bake for 25-35 minutes stirring occasionally so they toast evenly. If you are like me and will forget to stir...set a timer for every 5-7 minutes, stir, and toss them back in. 
• Should be golden brown and have a nice little crunch/pop when finished. My sweet were done at 25 minutes (I think because there was less in that pan) and my savory were done at 35 minutes.
• Add an extra pinch of sugar and cinnamon to your sweet seeds, stir, and serve.
• Add more seasoning to your savory as needed to taste, stir, and serve.

I guess some people eat there pumpkin seeds whole while others shell the seeds (like when eating sunflower seeds) I just went for the whole seed. The fiber and zinc (and other great things as well) are good for you and if they are nice and golden brown they aren't too tough to eat whole.