Delicious Roasted Pumpkin Seeds Recipe

Roasted pumpkin seeds are an easy, crunchy snack made with just a little oil and salt. Use seeds from pie pumpkins or other winter squash, then keep them simple or season them with your favorite sweet, savory, or spicy flavors.

Is it just me, or are healthy snacks hard to find nowadays?

It seems like so many “healthy” snacks are full of artificial sugars and chemical preservatives. All of which I really try to stay away from.

But there are lots of healthy snacks you can make at home. Most of which taste better than the “healthy” snacks you can buy at the store.

Pumpkin seeds, or pepitas if you want to be fancy, are very nutritious, containing manganese, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, zinc, protein, iron and high amounts of Vitamin E.

So now that you have made your own pumpkin puree I’m going to show you what to do with all those seeds I had you save.

Roasted pumpkin seeds are really, really good and sadly never seem to last very long.

Which is an indication of how good they taste…

Be careful though, you have to watch them in the oven because it seems like they don’t do anything forever and then BAM, they’re done. It’s really easy to over toast.

It’s very difficult to roast pumpkin seeds, so listen closely.

Wash.

Drizzle with olive oil and sea salt.

Put in a 325° F oven.

Watch closely.

Take out of oven.

Whoa!

Now take the rest of the day off. And treat yourself to a crunchy, salty, highly nutritious snack.

Really. It is that simple! But for you doubters, here’s the official recipe.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Ingredients:

• Seeds from pie pumpkins or other winter squash like butternut squash, delicata squash, acorn squash, etc.
• Olive oil or other liquid oil
• Sea salt
• Other toppings as desired

Instructions:

Put the pumpkin seeds (or other squash seeds) in a strainer or colander and run under cold water.

Swish them around and stuff to get the pumpkin stringy stuff off of them.

When they’re clean, pat the seeds thoroughly dry with a clean kitchen towel. Or let them air dry. Then toss them into a large bowl.

And by toss, I mean “put carefully”. Because tossing them doesn’t work well.

They’re kinda like Tiddlywinks.

Do you guys remember those?

If not, don’t tell me.

Anyway. Put them in the bowl.

Then drizzle them with just enough olive oil to coat them lightly.

Then sprinkle them with sea salt.

Now mix them up really well.

After you’ve mixed everything up, spread the seeds in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet. You can line the sheet with parchment paper for easier cleanup.

Or maybe just a flat cookie sheet works for you.

I like the security of the rim. Cuz I can be klutzy.

Roast at 325°F.

It shouldn’t take very long. About 5 – 10 minutes for smaller seeds, a little longer for the larger ones. They should be lightly golden brown and crisp.

Let them cool, and put them in a pretty bowl.

Once they are completely cool, you can store them in an airtight container at room temperature.

If you want to be a little more adventurous, you can always change the toppings.

Plain salt too boring? Use garlic salt instead.

Like a little sweet? Toss them in a cinnamon sugar mixture.

Living life on the spicy side? Add a little chipotle to the mix.

Seasoning Variations

• Garlic Parmesan: Garlic powder, grated Parmesan, and a little salt
• Smoky Chipotle: Chipotle powder, smoked paprika, and salt
• Cinnamon Sugar: Cinnamon and sugar
• Herbed: Rosemary, thyme, garlic powder, and salt
• Chili Lime: Chili powder and lime zest
• Pumpkin Pie: Pumpkin pie spice mix and sugar
• Ranch Seasoning
• Old Bay Seasoning
• Taco Seasoning
• You can also vary the oil you use. Try melted butter, melted coconut oil, or even bacon grease for different flavors.

Give them a try and let me know what you think!

More snack ideas you might like:

Blessings!