Vegan Recipes - Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds Recipe - A Healthy Snack

Just the right amount of pumpkin pulp!

Here's how to make perfect toasted pumpkin seeds that are crunchy and delicious.

Ingredients:

• As many pumpkin seeds as you can get from your jack-o-lantern(s)
• water
• salt
• olive oil
• preferred seasonings like Cajun, lemon pepper, curry, cinnamon / sugar, any variety of herbs (this could literally be anything)

Directions for how to make toasted pumpkin seeds:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F
2. In a strainer or colander, wash pumpkin seeds until most of the stringy pulp has been removed from the seeds.*
3. In a small pan, simmer water and pumpkin seeds with 1 tsp. salt for 10 minutes.
4. Turn the stovetop OFF, drain water, and place pan with pumpkin seeds back onto the burner while cooling.  This will allow excess water to evaporate from the seeds.**
5. Brush an even coating of olive oil onto baking sheet.
6. Spread pumpkin seeds out on the baking sheet in a single thin layer.
7. Bake on 400 degrees for 20 - 30 minutes or until the seeds turn a golden brown.
8. Carefully remove seeds from oven and sprinkle with salt.  At this stage you can also add whatever seasoning you like.  Suggested seasonings include:
9. Chili powder, garlic seasoning, cumin, cinnamon/sugar, Cajun seasoning...the list goes on.  Be creative!
10. Let seeds cool on a rack then dump them in a bowl and watch them disappear!

*I like to leave a small amount of pumpkin guts on my pumpkin seeds.  This adds extra pumpkiny flavor and texture when you bake them.

**Most recipes recommend drying the seeds with a paper towel before placing them on the baking sheet, but I find this cumbersome because the seeds stick to the paper towel and it turns into a fiasco trying to shake them loose.