How To Eat Pumpkin Seeds

With Halloween just around the corner and Thanksgiving on your heels, there's a good chance you'll have plenty of pumpkin seeds on your hands very soon! 

Here are 14 smart ways to eat them in multiple ways. 

Bonus Tip: You can complement these pumpkin seed recipes with winter squash seeds, including butternut squash, acorn squash, and spaghetti squash if that's what you have on hand.

Pumpkin seeds are a great source of zinc, the mineral found in many natural cold and flu remedies, so they provide a much needed immune boost this time of year. 

In fact, pumpkin seeds have been shown to have antimicrobial, antiviral, and antifungal properties. They are also a great source of vitamin E, which is good for the skin and hair.

It's perfectly fine to eat the white outer shell of pumpkin seeds, although some people don't like the texture. 

In fact, some studies have shown that you get more vitamin E from eating the whole seed.

If you are making pumpkin seeds harvested from your own pumpkins, remove most of the sticky and stringy substances, then rinse well in a colander. 

Spread them out on a baking sheet in a single layer and let them dry overnight before making any of these pumpkin seed recipes. 

Note: Many pumpkin seed recipes require it to be roasted first, so you can do that ahead of time as well.

14 ways to eat pumpkin seeds

• Roast them. Place the cleaned and rinsed seeds in a saucepan with 2 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of salt for each cup of seeds. Bring to a boil, then drain and mix with about a tablespoon of olive oil and the desired spices before roasting at 400 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.
• Prepare some pesto. This recipe uses pumpkin seeds and cilantro!
• Add them to your favorite granola.
• Cover the oatmeal with it.
• Top soups, like this wonderful pumpkin curry stew.
• Add them to salads, like this roasted pumpkin salad.
• Prepare a delicious mole sauce for the stacked enchiladas.
• Top them with your favorite fall muffins and breads.
• Add them to the rice pudding.
• Make the pumpkin seeds brittle.
• Add them to the guacamole. Seriously!
• Make a dressing by treating the pumpkin seeds with fresh garlic, parsley and cilantro leaves, then adding olive oil and lemon juice to taste.
• Add it to your favorite cookie recipe.
• You can even grind them up and add them to burgers and meatballs (real meat or meatless) for a unique nutty flavor!