Plated + Served: Oven Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

 Have you picked your pumpkin yet?

When the kids were younger, we’d drive to a pumpkin patch nearby and let them pick out a pumpkin. The only rule: they had to be able to carry it to the car.

(It was a blast watching the youngest ones try to negotiate the biggest pumpkins back to the car.)

Sadly, the pumpkin patch is now a condo patch, so the only pumpkins we pick are the ones at the supermarket… but that’s okay, too. Just like we did way back when…we still salvage the seeds from inside so we have something to munch on while we carve.

The kids used to like them roasted, with just a little bit of salt. But now, just like their lives have become, the process is a little more involved… some spice here, a little sweetness there… everyone puts their own individual twist on this recipe. They love it.

And the only rule? You have to eat everything you make!

Oven Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

prep: 15 minutes
cook: 1 hour

you’ll need…
2 cups pumpkin seeds, rinsed, cleaned of pulp and patted dry
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon salt (or more to taste)
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 tablespoon onion powder
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 tablespoons olive oil

let’s get to it…
Preheat oven to 250°F.
Spread pumpkin seeds in a single layer on a foil lined baking tray. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
Meanwhile, blend paprika, salt, garlic powder, onion powder and chili powder together in a small bowl or measuring cup; set aside.
Increase oven heat to 350°F. Reline baking tray with foil if necessary.
Place pumpkin seeds in a medium size bowl with olive oil; stir to coat seeds. Sprinkle 3 to 4-tablepoons of seasoning mix on seeds and stir gently (more or less to taste). Spread seeds in a single layer on foil lined baking tray.
Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, or until golden brown.