CRAVING A HEALTHY, SALTY CRUNCH?!

Get it straight from the pumpkin. Sugar Pumpkin Roasted Pumpkin Seeds satisfy cravings with a lightly salted, buttery, vitamin and mineral rich crunch.

Sugar Pumpkin Roasted Pumpkin Seed Snack

Jump to Recipe

ABOUT SUGAR PUMPKIN ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS

Grab a sugar pumpkin and quickly make this tasty healthy snack on your own.

Or, turn on fun fall music, bring the kids in as little chefs, and enjoy removing the pumpkin seeds together. It’s better than slime. And, why not get them in the kitchen learning to enjoy making healthy foods early?! (Make sure they’re old enough the pumpkin seeds don’t present a choking hazard.)

Only 3-4 ingredients needed for this one. Super simple. Fast. Craveable. Nutritious. All the things.

HELPFUL EQUIPMENT
Baking sheet: it’s surprising how many seeds a small pumpkin holds. Use a large stainless-steel baking sheet so they all fit. I prefer using a rimmed half-sheet to contain the slippery seeds
Fine mesh strainer: set this up over a bowl to collect the dripping water after cleaning the pumpkin seeds
Large metal spoon: use the spoon to scrape away the stringy portion of the pumpkin flesh
Kitchen towel: dry them on a fuzz free flour-sack type kitchen towel—keep in mind the seeds stick

HELPFUL INGREDIENTS
Seeds from a fresh sugar pumpkin
Ghee
Sea salt
Optional all-purpose season salt

PREP BEFORE BAKING PUMPKIN SEEDS

Purchase a small sugar pumpkin used for baking pies. Rinse the outside of the pumpkin and dry it.

Slice the pumpkin in half or simply cut a hole in the top. I find it easier to remove the seeds when I cut it in half, but it may be more fun for the kids to dig in from the top.

REMINDER!

Pumpkin seeds cook fast. Lightly toast them.

HOW TO MAKE SUGAR PUMPKIN ROAST PUMPKIN SEEDS

Take a second to pre-heat your oven to 325°.

Collect the seeds. Set a fine mesh strainer over a bowl. As you pull out the pumpkin seeds place them in the strainer.

Next, rinse the pumpkin seeds and remove all remnants of pumpkin from them as you rinse.

Then, set the strainer back over the bowl and let them drip dry for five minutes. Spread them on a fuzz free flour-sack style kitchen towel and let them dry out. This may take 2-4 hours (dry to the touch). Use the towel to pat them dry if you want to speed up the process.

Alternatively, allow them to completely dry for 24-48 hours (I like them better this way).

After the pumpkin seeds dry (completely or to the touch), toss them in a bowl with melted ghee and then sea salt.

Coat a baking sheet with ghee as well. It’s a stable heat tolerant fat. Spread the healthy seeds out evenly across the baking sheet.

Next, sprinkle them lightly with sea salt once again. Alternatively, after laying them out on the baking sheet, sprinkle them with HoneySalt and Olive’s all-purpose season salt. I like them with the all-purpose seasoning the best.

Now, time to roast. Roast, roast, roast ‘til the roast seeds are done! 🎃🎶 Have the kids make up a little melody for those words while you wait 😁. They have about ten minutes. Will they go country? Tv jingle? Rap style?

OK, back to business. Once roasted, let the healthy pumpkin seed snack cool before sharing.

HOW TO SERVE THIS HEALTHY PUMPKIN SEED SNACK

Serve alone as a nourishing crunchy snack.

Mix with other dried fruit and nuts for a roasted trail mix.

Top hot cereal. Try them on sprouted, organic, steel cut oats.

Don’t forget to save the pumpkin flesh. Roast or steam it until it’s soft. Then, use it in other recipes like pumpkin pie and pumpkin breakfast foods.

TIPS FOR SUCCESS

Use a fresh sugar pumpkin.
Let the seeds dry out before coating them in ghee.
Use high quality ghee and sea salt (not iodized table salt) for this healthy pumpkin snack.
Sprinkle extra sea salt, or even better, HoneySalt and Olive’s all purpose season salt over the seeds before baking.
Lightly toast.

WHAT TO AVOID WHEN YOU MAKE HOMEMADE PUMPKIN SEEDS

Do NOT overcook these. Go for a light toasting.

If you think, “oh, they need more time,” and give them a couple extra minutes, you may not like the taste. Eighteen to twenty-one minutes works well in a standard oven.

Every minute counts at the end. Watch carefully.

pumpkin seeds on a sheet pan for roasting

STORAGE OPTIONS FOR PUMPKIN SEEDS WITH GHEE

Store in a covered container in the refrigerator if you decide to save them. They go fast so this may not happen.

Roasted pumpkin seeds with all-purpose season salt and ghee

Print