Pumpkin Seeds

‘Tis the season to indulge in pumpkin-everything! These tasty snacks are a great-nutrient dense treat to keep on hand throughout the fall season. Although they may be tedious to prep, they are tooootally worth the slimy mess!

HEALTH BENEFITS
  • Nutrient Dense – packed with Vitamins + Minerals such as iron (calling all vegans + vegetarians!), magnesium, fibre, zinc, potassium, healthy EFA’s (essential fatty acids), protein, Vitamin K, phosphorus, manganese, copper and even tryptophan (which can boost your mood and help you sleep).
  • High in antioxidants – such as carotenoids and Vitamin E
  • Could lower blood sugar levels
  • Improve cardiovascular health and help lower blood pressure
  • Could reduce risk of certain cancers
  • Extremely high in Vitamins + Minerals (as mentioned above)
  • Boost immunity
  • Improve sperm quality (calling all males!!)
INGREDIENTS
  • Pumpkin Seeds
  • Sea Salt + Pepper
  • 1 tsp avocado oil (optional)
DIRECTIONS
  1. Preheat oven to lowest temperature setting.
  2. Clean the seeds. This annoying-but-necessary task is the hardest part of this recipe! Place guts + seeds into a bowl of water and use your hands to break it apart. The seeds will float to the top of the water which makes it waaaay easier!
  3. *Optional* Boil for 10 minutes in salt water. This is something I had never done until I started reading other peoples recipes! Apparently, this method helps make the pumpkin seeds easier to digest and produce a crispy outer shell during roasting. It’s not necessary to do this step but does make them extra tasty!
  4. Rinse the seeds and dry lightly with paper towel. Don’t worry about making them bone dry, just not as sopping wet. This step is also not 100% necessary but helps to even out the salt/pepper.
  5. Add salt + pepper – generously. This is when you can add the avocado oil or any other spices you may want to try (see notes below). Toss and/or massage seeds with spices.
  6. Spread seeds onto parchment paper on a large baking sheet. Try to spread out the seeds as thin as possible with minor overlapping.
  7. Roast seeds for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and stir. Roast for another 10 minutes. Continue this process until you get desired consistency (I find it usually takes between 20 – 30min). Test a seed each time you pull it out of the oven to see if they are palatable to your tasting.
NOTES
  • Oven Temperature: Nuts + Seeds contain a lot of vitamins, minerals and EFA’s – with that being said, some of these nutrients are also extremely sensitive to heat and can be damaged when heated at too high of a temperature which can cause free radicals in the body! Although it may be a bit tastier to heat these guys at a higher temperature, to keep the nutrient-levels high opt for the low-and-slow way to go.
  • Seasonings: Get creative with the seasonings! Make them sweet, savoury or keep them simple like the recipe listed here. Some spices could be: paprika, cumin, cinnamon, turmeric or garlic!

 

With love,
Heidi MacAulay
“Eat more plants. Do more yoga. Read more books.”

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