Roasty-Toasty Pumpkin Seeds

Confession time: I don't like pumpkin-flavored anything. Or eggnog, or peppermint. Basically all the revered flavors of the holiday season...can't stand 'em.
But don't you worry your pretty little head! I still like to carve pumpkins, decorate trees, and eat a mountain of mashed potatoes. Mmmm, I loves me some mashed potatoes. So I'm not a complete Scrooge, right?
Last night we carved pumpkins. I did my son's and got through half of mine when my son decided he didn't want to be put down. Like, ever. Oh, how I love growth spurts. Anyway, I didn't get to finish mine and it is currently wilting on the table. Poor pumpy-kin. After watching The Life and Death of a Pumpkin, my carving fail made me feel like an even more despicable human being.
Oh, did I mention that my pumpkin was pregnant?! Yeah, it was.

See? Told you. Pregnant pumpkin.

We found five or six of these puppies thriving in that pumpkin. I don't think I've ever seen that happen in all my pumpkin carving days.

Anyway, this morning I realized we still had a huge bowl of pumpkin guts laying around, so I decided to toast them. Roast them? I honestly don't know the difference. I put them in the oven to make them crunchy. There.

Pumpkin seeds are a great snack, for those of you who aren't already aware. They are very high in protein, zinc, and magnesium, and when roasted (unsalted) they are low in sodium and cholesterol. You can also roast them plain and add them to cereals like granola. 

I didn't make mine very healthy...I toasted them with butter and salt, so, yeah, lots of sodium and cholesterol there.

Here's how I made mine.

They don't look this sickly in reality, I promise. They've just got a Halloween vibe goin' on, okay? Don't judge.

Ingredients:

2 cups pumpkin seeds

3 tablespoons butter, melted (olive oil, coconut oil, and just about any other oil work just as well.)

Your choice of seasoning, optional:

• Salt
• Cinnamon/Sugar
• Cayenne Pepper
• Chili Pepper
• Ranch Dressing Mix
• Seasoning Salt
• Cajun Seasoning
• Whatever else you can think of!

Directions:

Heat oven to 300* F

Clear seeds of any major chunks of pulp. Small strings/pulp are alright, as they add flavor to the seeds. I cleaned mine off entirely by soaking them in a bowl of warm water. The seeds floated up, and the pulp sank down. Voila, clean seeds.

Toss seeds in a small bowl with melted butter/oil and your choice of seasoning, if you chose any.

Spread seeds in a single layer on a baking sheet.

Bake 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown (and no longer chewy), stirring occasionally.

Let cool and enjoy!