Quick Recipe of the Season

Besides the colors and the crisp air, another reason why I love autumn is the sudden explosion of pumpkins! Big ones, small ones, all of 'em! My sisters and I would do your traditional pumpkin carvings when we were young, giggling at the gross mess we made with the insides and threatening to chuck it at each other. We'd pick through to get the seeds and my mother would toast them in the oven for us. There is something special about homemade toasted pumpkin seeds that seems to be lacking in the store bought variety.

Looking through my mass of recipes I found a quick one for toasted seeds and thought I'd share.

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds
2 cups pumpkin seeds
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.  Wash pumpkin seed in a colander under running water.  Wipe off excess fibers.  On a cookie sheet, combine pumpkin seeds with remaining ingredients.  Bake approximately 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until seeds are dry and golden.

 As with any recipe, add what you'd like to it! My elder sister does her own spicy variety and I add some cayenne pepper to a portion of mine for Grendal. I haven't tried a 'sweet' variety but I do think it could be done. Enjoy!