Typically, most of us when preparing winter squash (pumpkin, butternut, buttercup, acorn, etc.) discard all those delicious and nutritious seeds. They make a very tasty, budget-friendly snack packed with proteins, fiber, healthy fats and iron. They are also great to garnish a soup, toss into your salad for extra crunch, on your oatmeal in the morning, the possibilities are endless!
Ingredients
- squash seeds from 2-3 winter squashes, with or without the pulp*
- 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
- salt and pepper
*you don't absolutely need to remove the pulp, in fact keeping the pulp adds extra fiber and additional caramelized flavor to the seeds. If you do want to remove it, my go to trick is to put the seeds and pulp in a bowl of water and with your clean hands work the seeds to dislodge the pulp!
Directions
1. Preheat the oven at 300⁰F.
2. Cut the squash open and remove the seeds found in the interior cavity. Clean and dry the seeds well.
3. Place the seeds on a baking tray, add the olive oil, salt and pepper, and toss until evenly coated.
4. Spread the seeds out so that they are not overlapping too much, but instead form a single layer on the tray.
5. Roast for 20-30 minutes or until they've reached a nice golden brown color and dig in!!
Tip: you can play around with different herbs and spices and make these in a variety of flavors. For a sweet version, omit the salt and instead toss them with a little maple sugar and cinnamon. For added spice, sriracha or chili flakes or cayenne work well. Cumin, curry and smoked paprika also work really well.