Pumpkin Seeds and Halloween

As Halloween is fast approaching, many of us are carving pumpkins to put out on our doorstep. What can we do with the inside of the pumpkin once we carve it?

Let’s make a healthy snack with those pumpkin seeds! One of the easiest snacks you can make is to roast pumpkin seeds.

How to make roasted pumpkin seeds:

1. Wash the pumpkin seeds to get them away from the pulp (you can typically use a colander for this step).
2. Dry the seeds on a cookie sheet (some sites suggest to dry them overnight).
3. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
4. Toss pumpkin seeds with 1.5-2 tablespoons of olive oil.
5. Add other spices to this mix as you desire (garlic powder, cayenne pepper, cajun seasoning). Although salt makes them yummy, try to tone it down.
6. Place seeds flat (not piled) on a nonstick cooking sheet.
7. Cook for about 45 minutes until golden brown.
8. The cooking time may vary, so it is best to check on them every so often.
9. Once cooked, let cool before serving them.

Voila! A healthy, fun treat that cost you practically nothing to make!

Nutrition information

One ounce (handful) of unseasoned pumpkin seeds has:

• 148 calories
• about 12 grams of fat (mostly polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats, the healthy kinds), and
• 9 grams of protein (or 1 ounce serving of protein).

What a great snack between meals (just watch those portions!).Check here for some other interesting facts about pumpkins and stay tuned for more information on healthy pumpkin recipes as the Thanksgiving holiday draws near.

_{Photo courtesy of [A Mother's Heart]}

No related posts