Looking for something to do with all that pumpkin gook you accumulate around Halloween? Or what about all those “decorative pumpkins” you have but never carved? This recipe not only utilizes parts of that pumpkin that usually find their way into the trash but is also the perfect holiday snack!

Okay, first thing’s first. There are only four ingredients in this recipe. YES! This recipe is one that I believe my dad accidentally made years ago and has since become a staple in our family… that’s TK.

Whether you’re carving pumpkins with your kids or too old for that but trying to find a way to get in the spirit, these pumpkin seeds are the answer to why you should carve pumpkins or at least use whole pumpkins for your pumpkin-spiced recipes. This year, I will admit, I carved for the seeds only and used the pumpkin in a roasted root vegetable side dish. The seeds take two days to make (although most of it is marinating time and requires little to no effort) but as all my family members will attest to — they are worth it.

Salty, garlicky, chewy, and crunchy, this is the flavor combination you’ll be surprised works so well. The key to this recipe is soaking the seeds for 24 hours in water to truly clean the seeds and “re-plumb” their shape, then to soak the seeds for 24 hours in soy sauce and seasoning. The seeds soak up the moisture like a sponge so when you roast them, they take on the most robust flavor.

INGREDIENTS

1 large Pumpkin

1 cup Tamari Soy Sauce

1 tbsp. Garlic Powder

1 tbsp. Smoked Paprika

Serving Size: 6

INSTRUCTIONS

48 HOURS PRIOR

• Cut and gut a pumpkin from the top.
• Using your hands, separate the seeds from the orange stringed gook it’s attached to.
• Using a strainer, rinse the pumpkins seeds to remove any extra gook.
• Place the pumpkin seeds in a Ziploc bag or large bowl then cover with clean water.
• Let sit for 24 hours.

24 HOURS PRIOR

• Once again, rinse the pumpkin seeds in a strainer.
• Return to the bag or bowl.
• Pour Tamari sauce, garlic powder, and smoked paprika over the pumpkin seeds.
• Stir/shake until combined.
• Cover and let sit for 24 hours.

BAKE

• After 24 hours, preheat the oven to 400°.
• Pour the pumpkin seeds on an oiled baking sheet.
• Evenly distribute the seeds into a thin layer across the sheet.
• Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, flip sides, bake for another 10 minutes.
• If you are using more than one pumpkin, this may take longer, just bake at 10 minutes for 2x (stirring between each), then after that, only bake for 5 minutes at a time, checking in between.
• Once the seeds are golden, take out a let cool.
• Don’t be afraid if the edges burn a bit, the key is to continue watching so that the soy sauce doesn’t fry the seeds before you take them out.
• Enjoy!