Roasted pumpkin seeds
Make the most of your Halloween pumpkin and roast the seeds for a healthy snack among all the treats.
Ingredients
- 1 large jack o’ lantern pumpkin, or other pumpkin or squash
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- ½ tsp salt or 1–2 tsp of your favourite seasoning mix, such as Cajun, BBQ or fajita
Method
With a small, sharp knife, cut the top off the pumpkin and use a large spoon to scrape out the stringy pith and seeds into a bowl. Separate the seeds from the pith as best you can and put the seeds into a sieve or colander, removing as much pith as you can. Discard the pith.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6.
Rinse the seeds well, picking off any bits of pith and pumpkin flesh. (The pumpkin tends to stick to your hands, so a good technique for cleaning the seeds is to run your hands through the seeds and rinse them clean of pumpkin bits a couple of times.) Drain well, then spread out on a clean tea towel and pat dry.
Transfer the seeds to a large baking tray (or use two, so that the seeds are well spread out) and drizzle them with oil. Sprinkle with salt or seasoning mix and give them a good stir so that they are all coated.
Roast in the oven for 15–20 minutes, stirring them halfway through, until the seeds are toasted and golden brown. Leave to cool on the tray, then pour into a bowl to serve. They will crisp up as they cool, so don’t try to eat them too soon!
Recipe Tips
You can make this at any time of year, using the seeds from any type of pumpkin or squash.
The roasted seeds will keep for a day or so in an airtight container, but they tend to become chewy over time.
To make pumpkin seeds in the air fryer, preheat the machine to 180C. Add the unoiled pumpkin seeds to the basket and cook for 1 minute to dry them. Tip them into a bowl and coat with oil, salt and spices (if using). Return them to the basket and cook for a further 3-4 minutes or until golden-brown. Tip onto a plate and allow to cool and crisp up before eating.