Don’t Throw Away the Pumpkin Seeds!

As we fast approach Halloween, no doubt every household with children has already bought or is planning to buy a pumpkin. As much fun as all the carving can be, make sure you don’t waste all the highly nutritious and tasty goodness that pumpkins have to offer. Pumpkin soup is always a winner in our house. And the kids love it too which is great. Check out a previous blog of mine for my Pumpkin Soup Recipe.

But today I’m going to focus on the little gems you find inside the pumpkin. The pumpkin seeds! Most people just throw these away. That’s total madness. These are so rich in nutrients, healthy fats and anti-oxidants. And with about 30 seconds prep time you have made a seriously delicious snack and/or addition to your soup or salad.

Pumpkin Seeds Preparation

Scoop all the seeds out from the middle of the pumpkin. Get as much of the stringy pumpkin flesh off the seeds as possible. Put them in a small oven-proof dish , add a teaspoon of rapeseed oil, a pinch of salt and pepper and a teaspoon of curry powder. You can add what you like in terms of spices. Garam masala would work. You could even use whole cumin seeds which is really nice. Try different spices and see what you like. Then give it a mix and bake in the oven for 20/30 minutes on a medium heat.

They go crispy, crunchy and seriously delicious. Sprinkle them on top of your pumpkin soup. Mix them into a salad. Or just have them on their own as a snack.

Word of Warning

Just be aware that like any seeds or nut, pumpkin seeds are a high calorie and fat item. Now this isn’t a bad thing, the fat is seriously healthy fat that is good for your body and will fill you up. But at the same time if you sit there a much through a whole load of them you will be taking in a whole lot of calories for not much food. So just weigh them, and make sure you know how many calories are in the quantity you are having.