Who would have thunk it!

So this is my first blog! Yippee! And surprisingly it isn't a dessert!! I know .... hard to believe huh!? I wanted to start off this blog tipping my hat off to this wonderful fall season! Sometimes living in Nashville we miss out on having a fall season, no colorful leaves, no scents of fall lingering in the air...just waking up to to the bitter cold air the morning after a 70 degree day!! So without further ado I would like to introduce my personal recipe for ...

Toasted Pumpkin Seeds!

I have always loved carving pumpkins...the best part for me was digging my hands down deep into the eewwy gooey pulpy seed filled mess!

TOASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS

(best if done on a night you want to carve, but not required)

Multiple large pumpkins

1/2 cup Salt

Water

Carving Kit to cut pumpkin

***I always have a difficult time with measurements! I always use the best tools God gave me: my eyes, mouth, and nose! When it looks/tastes/smells good...it's good for me!***

Use a sharp knife from the carving kit to cut a circle around the stem large enough to get your hand inside the pumpkin. Once you have circle cut, pull on the stem to open the pumpkin. Inside are all the goodies! Use the Scrapper or a large spoon to scrape all the pumpkin seeds out. You will get pulp with the seeds. Scrape the pumpkin out until it is clean inside. Once you have it all cleaned out get a large bowl to put just the seeds in. Sift through the pulp/seed mixture to pull just the seeds out and place them in the large bowl. Try to get as much of the pulp off the seeds as possible.

Once you have all the seeds in the bowl cover the seeds with water. There really is no set amount of water since the amount of seeds you will have will vary, but just make sure they are swimming in some water! Next, I would add about a 1/2 cup of salt to the bowl. You can always add more if you like them saltier. Then cover the bowl with a lid if possible or just clear plastic wrap will do. Leave them set on the counter for at least 24 hours to soak up that yummy salt flavor!

After 24 hours,

First pre-heat your oven to 350. Pour seed mixture into a strainer and rinse the seeds off with clean water. Take a cookie sheet and spray with non-cooking spray. Spread seeds onto the pan evenly. Sprinkle top of seeds with salt and place in the oven to bake.

Bake seeds for about an hour and a half or until seeds are dried out, times may vary depending on the oven. About every 20 minutes move the seeds around with a wooden spoon to make sure all the wet seeds are exposed to the heat. You can also sprinkle more salt as you stir them around if you wish. After all the seeds have dried (about an hour and a half later) pull cookie sheet out and let seeds cool.

Store seeds in a closed container. Enjoy! I have keep seeds for a couple of weeks, but they usually don't last that long in my house!

***Photography by Kristen Wiltse!***