Don't toss the pumpkin seeds!

Monday night was a treat. I got to watch my husband and granddaughter carve a very traditional jack-o’-lantern. Sora decided to roll up her sleeves and dig her hands in the stringy orange pumpkin innards, searching for seeds she carefully dropped into a plastic bowl.

Reggie and I talked to her about jack-o’-lanterns and how her Great-Grandpa L.H. was always the pumpkin carver in the family. Reggie showed her how to notch the cut-out pumpkin top, matching it to a notch on the pumpkin, so he could easily replace it when the carving was done.

"Can I put it back on when we’re finished?” she asked. Of course, we told her. That’s the only way you learn.

Reggie told her it was her great-grandpa who had taught him how to notch it. Love, love, love these memories and traditions.

We started a new one Monday night, I guess. I have never roasted pumpkin seeds. I had planned to do it last year, but I didn’t tell Reggie that, and the seeds were tossed out with lots of gooey pumpkin slime and balled up newsprint.

I read several online recipes. The process is simple. You dry out the seeds in the oven, then add a little oil and seasoning and put them back in a little longer. That’s it! The result is a crunchy, nutty-flavored snack. And it’s a healthy one as well.

Pumpkin seeds, or pepitas, are a good source of zinc, fiber, iron and potassium.

The process of toasting them is very simple. So if you’re carving a jack-o’-lantern for Halloween, be sure to save the seeds and make a fun and healthy snack.


Editor’s note: The Wilson Times publication Wilson Woman would love to include holiday recipes from our readers for an upcoming publication. Please send to bhearn@wilsontimes.com or mail to Bradley Hearn, c/o The Wilson Times, P.O. Box 2447, Wilson NC 27894. Deadline is Friday.


Toasted Pumpkin Seeds

• Pumpkin seeds
• Olive oil
• Seasoning, such as salt, garlic salt, seasoned salt, cinnamon sugar (use butter instead of olive oil if using cinnamon sugar)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Remove pulp from pumpkin seeds and rinse in a colander. Pour pumpkin seeds in single layer on baking sheet lined with parchment paper or prepared with baking spray.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until dry.* Stir halfway through.

Remove from oven and toss with olive oil (it only takes a little) and sprinkle with seasoning.

Return to oven and cook for another 25 minutes until golden brown. Stir halfway through.

*Some recipes cook for an hour at a lower temperature, adding seasoning and oil at the beginning. I cooked mine as listed above.)

Pretty pumpkin pretzels

If you have a little time between now and Halloween, pick up just a few ingredients to make this quick and easy Halloween treat.

My daughter saw these sweet pretzel treats on Pinterest and suggested we make them for the food column.

She made Pretzel Pumpkins one afternoon while I worked on another food column recipe. In no time, she had a small army of little pretzels covered with orange-tinted melted chocolate that looked very much like jack-o-lanterns.

The process is simple. You just melt the white chocolate chips with a tablespoon of shortening and stir in food coloring to make them the shade of orange you desire. Next, dip the mini pretzels into the melted chocolate, place on wax paper and add a green M&M for the stem. The chocolate sinks into the recesses of the pretzel and leaves an appearance of spooky eyes and a mouth.

Let the chocolate harden, and you have a lot of sweet treats for very little effort.


Pretzel Pumpkins

• 1 bag mini pretzels (You won’t use the whole bag)
• 1 bag M&Ms candy, needing only the green ones (We used M&M minis)
• Orange food coloring (We used liquid food coloring)
• 1 12-oz. bag white chocolate chips
• 1 tablespoon shortening

Place chocolate chips and shortening in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute; stir until all chips are incorporated. If they don’t melt completely as you stir, microwave in 10-second intervals. Mix in food coloring. Dip pretzels into melted chocolate to cover and place on wax paper or parchment paper. Add a green M&M mini at the top of the prezel for the stem.

Adapted from Butter with a Side of Bread Blog

Sweets for Halloween

Halloween is all about sweet treats: candy corn, chocolate bars, popcorn balls, gooey taffy wrapped in seasonal paper.

The kids will get plenty if they go trick-or-treating, and the parents can get their fill as well with the goodies back home.

Since my children were little, I’ve made a buffet of sorts of appetizers and sweets that the family can munch on Halloween night while we wait for the trick-or-treaters to arrive.

Today’s recipe for Halloween mix would make a nice addition to that table.

It would also be perfect to take to a fall carnival or trunk-or-treat event. Either serve it from a bowl or put a cupful or two into individual seasonal plastic bags tied with matching ribbon.

This popcorn-based mix is one of those recipes that can be easily changed around to match the tastes of your family. It can also reflect what’s in your kitchen cabinets!

I started with a basic recipe, then started adding some of our favorite treats, including dry-roasted almonds. I also threw in some pretzels, which I love with almond bark drizzled all over them, and some Cheerios.

The recipe doesn’t take but a few minutes to make, but do allow the candy to dry before breaking it up and storing it.

I wasn’t so sure of adding the candy corn to my mix because I really couldn’t imagine almond bark on top of candy, but why not? It’s Halloween!


Halloween Mix

• 2 bags microwave popcorn, popped
• 1 cup candy corn
• 1 cup peanuts
• 1/2 to 1 cup dry-roasted almonds
• 1 cup Reese's Pieces (could also use M&Ms in seasonal colors)
• 1 cup pretzels (I used twists)
• 1 cup Cheerios
• 1 pound white almond bark (vanilla flavored)

In a large bowl, mix all dry ingredients.

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt almond bark according to directions on package. Pour melted almond bark over popcorn mixture and stir to combine. If you think you have too much bark, add some pretzels or cereal to balance it out.

Pour onto a large sheet of waxed paper or parchment paper and spread out. Once it has cooled and dried completely, break into smaller pieces and store until ready to eat.