Since we always baked our own pumpkins in the fall, it seemed like my mother always had pumpkin seeds ready to be toasted in the oven. Sounds a little bit like a 1950's scenario, right? Not quite the case, as she is a single, working mother of three, but still-she loved pumpkins and knew how much we loved the pumpkin seeds! (Ok-or spitting the pumpkin seeds at each other...but still, we loved them!)

I'm going to give you the basic "how to toast your pumpkin seeds" directions, but also we're going to try some fun and festive flavors! Most people just sprinkle salt on the seeds, which is great and delicious, but you can do so much more!

Directions:
1) Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2) After you've removed the pumpkin seeds from your pumpkin, clean them well. Remove all pulp that might be sticking to the seeds. Rinse the seeds to get any remaining pumpkin pulp off of them.
3) Place the seeds in a bowl of salt water for a little bit. This is a newer trick I've learned. Let them soak in the salt water for 10 minutes while the oven finishes preheating.
4) Remove them from the bowl of water, pat dry.
** If you want to try a flavor, stop here and skip to the section called "Shake It Up!". If you want to have them lightly salted, continue **
5) Place seeds on a baking sheet and spread them out.
6) Lightly sprinkle with salt.
7) Place in the oven for roughly 15 minutes. Stir/flip them 1/2 way through the baking time. Keep an eye on them so they don't burn, as all ovens are a little different.

Shake It Up!
Here are some great flavor ideas. You'd do this right after step 4 above. Here's my trick: After step 4, I put all the seeds into a Tupperware bowl with a lid. Then I throw in my seasonings and place the lid on the bowl...then I shake the seeds in the seasoning! This way, the seeds get coated and I don't end up with extra burnt seasoning on the baking sheet.
Here are some ideas:
1) Old Bay Seasoning
2) Seasoned Salt
3) Cumin
4) Red Pepper (ground, not flakes), but be careful-don't use too much seasoning
5) Garlic or Garlic Salt
6) Cinnamon
7) Be creative! Got a favorite spice...try it out!
Once you've completed this, continue with the recipe above at step 5.

Sugar and Spice
Our favorite way to eat pumpkin seeds is to turn them into a sweet treat. To do this, follow the basic pumpkin seed directions above (steps 1-7 without the "Shake It Up" section)-as if you were just going to salt them. After they have cooked, remove them from the baking sheet and put them into a Tupperware bowl that has a lid. Place some sugar and cinnamon into the bowl, place the lid on the bowl-and while the seeds are still warm, shake it well! You have to do this post cooking the seeds so the sugar doesn't melt/burn on the seeds. This is absolutely amazing! Joshua's favorite :)

Pumpkin seeds are very versatile. Use them as a topping for soups and salads, or just as a quick snack. You'll love exploring new ways to season and crunch on this delicious fall treat!

This weekend, we're making a Baked Stuffed Pumpkin. It's awesome-I tried it out last night. You'll want to have a medium sized pumpkin handy-which we will be cleaning out together Saturday morning. Perfect opportunity to try a new seasoning on your pumpkin seeds, too!

Enjoy Ballston!