Jack O’Lantern Pumpkin Seeds Recycled!

Photo by: Momster

Its almost Halloween and along with the season comes the carving of the pumpkin.  The pumpkin carving ritual isn’t complete until you have cleaned out all those seeds. Here is a great idea, recycle and reuse them, by roasting them in the oven. Roasted pumpkin seeds are packed with nutrition and low in carbs. For 1/4 cup, it is about 5 grams of carbs and 2 grams of fiber. They have a nutty flavor and are packed with protein. You can salt them or better yet flavor them with your favorite sweet or savory spice. The smell and crunch of roasted pumpkin seeds will add  new dimensions to the carving experience!! Of course when possible, by an organically grown pumpkin for organic roasted seeds!

Here are the directions to roast those seeds!

Ingredients:

Photo by: kzimmer

• Pumpkin or squash seeds
• If you want to add salt or seasonings, you’ll need a bit of oil so it will stick

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 F.

1) Clean the pulp off the pumpkin seeds, and dry with paper towels.

2) If desired, toss with a little olive or other oil. You only need enough to barely coat, otherwise, they will be greasy. Add salt and any kind of seasoning you want – garlic powder, Cajun seasoning, dried chili powder, or whatever sounds good to you!

3) Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and spread the seeds out in one layer.

Bake for 3-5 minutes, until seeds just start to color and are fragrant. Sometimes I use a longer but safer method of using a lower temperature. If you roast the seeds at 250 degrees F., you don’t have to watch them as carefully. It takes about 45 -60 minutes.

By the way, did you know the origin of carving pumpkins? The story of the Jack o’Lantern comes from Irish folklore. Jack was a crafty farmer who tricked the Devil into climbing a tall tree. When the Devil reached the highest branch, Jack carved a large cross in the trunk, making it impossible for the Devil to climb down. In exchange for help getting out of the tree, the Devil promised never to tempt Jack with evil again. When Jack died, he was turned away from Heaven for his sins and turned away from Hell because of his trickery. Condemned to wander the Earth without rest, Jack carved out one of his turnips, took an ember from the devil, and used it for a lantern to light his way. He became known as “Jack of the Lantern.”