Here at Macaroni Kid West Omaha, we love bringing you yummy, yet simple recipes to share with your family. I always try to share with you recipes I have made and that are fairly simple. I am extra excited to share this recipe with you because it is one that brings back so many great memories of Halloween as a kid. My mom made pumpkin seeds for her kindergarten class each year, so I don’t know Halloween without this recipe. It is nothing fancy but has a bit of nostalgia with it, so my heart is warm getting to share it with you. My kids eat these up, so hopefully, yours will too! This recipe doesn’t have to be done at night, but for some reason we have always carved our pumpkins in the evenings, so it is again part of the nostalgia here. And let me tell you, the smell you wake up to in the morning is nothing short of mouth-watering!
What you will need:
- A garbage bag or plastic tablecloth – to cover and protect your surface from all the goo
- Sharp knife – for cutting off top
- A small metal spoon – for scraping out the “guts” ** I recommend a grapefruit spoon! The little teeth on it are amazing at detaching all the guts from the pumpkin.
- A large spoon - for scooping and removing the guts, or for more mess and fun – use your hands!
- A large bowl – to place all the guts in
- A smaller bowl – to place all the seeds in, once removed from the goo
- A small colander
- Cookie sheet
Ingredients:
- Pumpkin
- Worchestire Sauce* (spelling it is just as bad as saying it! )
- ½ cup salted butter, melted
- Lawry’s seasoning*
- Cracked pepper*
Directions:
- I won’t spend time telling you how to carve your pumpkin, I am fairly certain you all know what you are doing. So, lets start at the part where you have a huge heaping pile of pumpkin goo staring at you…
- Preheat your oven to 200 degrees.
- Remove the seeds from the “guts” and place in a colander. Rinse well.
- Place the rinsed seeds in a bowl with the melted butter and enough Worchestire Sauce to cover them. Let sit and marinate for 1 hour. They will float a bit, so it is best to give them a stir a few times throughout the hour.
- While waiting, grease your cookie sheet.
- Using a slotted spoon, remove seeds from bowl and place on cookie sheet.
- Sprinkle with additional Worchestire Sauce and sprinkle the Lawry’s seasoning liberally over all the seeds. Seriously, use more Lawry’s than you think you should! Add a few shakes of cracked pepper.
- Place in your over at 200 degrees and go to bed*. Yup, that’s right. Low and slow is the key here to get super crunchy, roasted pumpkin seeds. I know that it might make some of you nervous, but my Mom has made this recipe for 50 years and I myself for at least 15. The seeds have NEVER burned, always turn out crispy, and no one’s kitchen has blown up. I will tell you that the couple of times I tried making these during the day, they never turned out as good as my over-night ones… So trust me on this part!
- In the morning, using a spatula, scrape the seeds loose from the cookie sheet and place them in a baggie or air-tight container for storing. We actually leave them out in a bowl for everyone to snack on as they pass by. Your call.
* You will notice that there are a few measurements and times missing. This is on purpose. This is a pretty fool-proof recipe. Just season it to your taste! I will say, always add more seasoning than you think. When it comes to the baking part, give one a try. If the seed isn't super crunchy, put it back in for longer. With such a low heat, you will have a hard time burning them.
