How to bake pumpkin seeds

One of my very favourite things about Halloween is carving pumpkins and baking the seeds into a yummy snack.  My mom used to do it every year when we were growing up and I loved it!  The only problem is, that for years I had no idea how to properly bake pumpkin seeds and they never turned out properly.  So I’m going to share a few tips with you about how to bake your own pumpkin seeds.

Recipe: Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Freshly roasted pumpkin seeds are delicious and are so easy to make!

[EDIT October 2015: Thanks to all the wonderful people who commented below, I’ve found an even better recipe than the original one posted below! I’ve used this method the last two years and the seeds come out PERFECT! To make the BEST pumpkin seeds, do this instead:

1. Add about 1-2 teaspoons of salt to a bowl of water.


2. Add the pumpkin seeds to the water, stir them up and let them soak overnight.


3. Gently pat the seeds dry with a paper towel.


4. Spray a cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray and spread the seeds out in a single layer.


5. Sprinkle some extra salt on top.


6. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes at 325F until golden.]

Original Recipe:

Ingredients

• 3 cups fresh pumpkin seeds


• 1-2 Tablespoons canola oil, butter, or olive oil


• Salt

Instructions

1. When carving your pumpkin, separate the seeds from the pumpkin pulp.


2. Rinse the seeds in a colander under cold water.


3. Pat the seeds dry with a paper towel.


4. Add 1-2 Tablespoons of oil and mix to coat.


5. Add salt to taste and mix to coat.


6. Spread onto a baking sheet in a single layer.


7. Bake at 325F for 45 minutes, stirring once, until golden.

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 45 minutes

First things first, when you are carving your pumpkins you are going to need two bowls – one for pumpkin pulp, and another for the seeds.  Yes, it’s a little more work to separate the seeds, but Halloween only comes once a year, so it’s totally worth it!

Take out the big chunks of pulp where ever you can.  It’s never going to be completely clean, but do your best.  We carved two pumpkins and got about 3 or 4 cups of seeds from them.

Run the pumpkin seeds under cold water to rinse off the excess pulp.  I was pretty surprised how much orange stuff could just be rinsed away.  You can definitely see a difference from the photo above vs the photo below.

Squeeze out any excess water.  I’m not sure this part is 100% necessary, but it makes me feel better.  I was really worried my pumpkin seeds would have too much moisture in them to cook properly.  They were by no means dry when I finished, but I did manage to get some of the moisture off of them.

This next part is important.  Add about 1-2 Tablespoons of oil (or butter, or olive oil, etc) to the seeds and mix them until they are coated.  Also add a generous amount of salt to them and stir that up too.

This part may have been where I’ve gone wrong in the past.  Normally I’m lazy and I just pour all of my seeds onto a baking sheet, no matter how many I have.  They always took a really long time to cook, and eventually they would just dry up.  So now I’ve realized that you have to put them on a baking sheet in a single layer… even if it means you have to bake them in several batches.

Bake at 325F for 45 minutes, stirring them once about half way through.  They will be slightly golden and crispy.  Let them cool for a bit, pour them into a bowl, and enjoy!

Pumpkin seeds are delicious, they are healthy, and there is something about them that is so comforting for autumn!

They are high in fibre, zinc, copper and energy producing iron.  Plus, kids love them!   So save those seeds when it’s time to carve your pumpkins and enjoy some delicious, freshly roasted pumpkin seeds.

Source : onelittleproject.com
Read more...