Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Happy Halloween! It's my favorite holiday — skulls and witches and pumpkins and scary stuff. I can't get enough of that. I even leave some Halloween decor up in my house year-round because everyday should be Halloween. Oh, and I LOVE costumes! This year, I'm going as Rose the Riveter. I'll be wearing this to the Creep Show at the Hi-Tone on Halloween night.

I wore it last weekend to three parties, and I even won second place in the Friends for Life party costume contest!

Anyway, I'm hoping you're in the spirit too. And if you are, I'm assuming you're planning to carve or have already carved your jack-o-lantern. I'm an amateur when it comes to pumpkin carving, but I do my best. As long as it has something that resembles eyes and crooked smile, it's alright by me. I actually wrote an article in the Vegan Cuts Fall Harvest ebook all about fun things to do with pumpkin! It's a free download (get it here!), and it has all kinds of delicious fall recipes and tips by some of my fave vegan bloggers (Jackie Sobon, Melisser, JL Fields, etc).

You can really do all sorts of things with pumpkin — eat it, smear it on your face, drink it in a smoothie, etc. But my favorite thing is eating the seeds!

I always wash the stringy bits from my seeds and then coat them in spices, sugar, and oil before roasting for about 45 minutes. Then I keep the jar of roasted seeds on my desk at work for a quick snack.

Here's my recipe.

Sweet 'n' Spicy Roasted Pumpkin Seeds
----------------------------------------------------
About 1 cup pumpkin seeds, washed, stringy bits removed
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. agave
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp. cumin
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. powdered ginger
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.

Stir together the pumpkin seeds, oil, agave, salt, and spices. Spread on the baking sheet, trying not to let too many seeds overlap. It's okay if some do.

Bake for about 45 minutes or until seeds turn golden brown. Allow to cool. Store in a glass jar.

------------------------------------------------------

Speaking of fall recipes, check out these Masala Spiced Popcorn Balls that I developed for Earth Balance! The recipe is posted on the Earth Balance website.