1. Home
  2. Food & recipes

15 Awesome Ways to Save and Reuse Your Pumpkin Seeds

The pumpkin craze might have faded away into the backdrop long ago. But for those still stuck with a bunch of those old pumpkins or wanting to reuse them in some way or form, there is still plenty that can be done even during the winter chill. Today we bring to you delightful ways in which you can reuse those pumpkin seeds.

1. Standard salt and olive oil roasted pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

If you’ve never roasted pumpkin seeds before and this is your first time trying it out, this might be just the recipe for you! Simply Recipes shows you the basics of roasting pumpkin seeds, drizzling them with olive oil and lightly salting them so that the added tastes are subtle and the true, natural flavour of the pumpkin seeds can shine through. It’s not a strong one, but it’s completely delicious!

 2. Cinnamon and cayenne pepper pumpkin seed brittle

VIEW IN GALLERY VIEW IN GALLERY

If you’ve ever tried peanut brittle, pretzel brittle, or any other kind of brittle, really, then you already know how delicious this crunchy snack can be! Whether you make yours a little saltier or a little more sweet, there’s just something about the snack that’s so satisfying. This is especially true when it’s made with pumpkin seeds! Food Network shows you how to prepare and mix the seeds to make the brittle.

3. Garlic roasted pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

We’ve always been huge garlic fans, almost no matter what the food is. If it’s a savoury food, chances are good that we’ll like it made with garlic! It’ll come as no surprise to you, then, that we’ve actually tried these delicious roasted garlic pumpkin seed recipe from Chicago Now in real life, nor that we  dig it up every year and use our first batch of seeds to make this family favourite. Check out how they made it using garlic salt and garlic powder.

4. Spicy Worcestershire sauce pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

When you imagined roasting your own pumpkin seeds, did you also imagine being able to choose a taste that will give you a little bit of a kick? Well, there are lots of different ways to add some great spice to your pumpkin seeds, but this recipe from Recipe Obsessed is certainly one of our favourites! They show you how to include a healthy helping of Worcestershire sauce in your seasoning mixture to get a taste experience that certainly has spice but isn’t just pure burn on your tongue; the sauce packs it full of flavour as well.

5. Cajun spiced roasted pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

If you’re going to have spice involved in your recipe, would you prefer it be a spice that has a little bit of Cajun flare to it? Well, we can’t say we blame you! Cajun recipes are always chalk full of exotic, refreshing spice thanks to their unique blend of spices and oils, and this recipe from Just a Pinch is no exception. They show you how to properly clean your seeds and then season and roast them to complete spiced up perfection.

6. Pepitas roasted pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

Are you looking for a pumpkin seed recipe with some spice, but a spice that’s a little different than the kinds we’ve shown you so far? Personally, we love Mexican food more than just about anything, so that’s the flavour we’re often thinking along the lines of when we think of food that has some kick. That’s why we love this pepitas recipe from Rachel Cooks so much! It’s amazing how much flavour you can get in a recipe that’s just as easy to make as any others on the list.

7. Jalapeno paleo pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

The beauty of making your own snacks at home is that you can choose between making them nice and simple or making them a little bit more gourmet, giving the snack a fun twist or a unique and completely delicious feature. That’s why we decided to give this awesome jalapeno and pumpkin recipe a try this year! We like that Paleoporn added some spice, but let the jalapenos do the talking in that regard, leaving the pumpkins just lightly seasoned and salted. That way everyone can enjoy the snack, picking around the jalapenos if they don’t want any spice or scooping up a big handful of everything if they do!

8. Spiced nut and Masala roasted pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

What if you would rather have some of the flavour that spicy occasionally comes with, but you’d rather make it as mild as possible so you don’t have to take a drink to calm your tongue down after every handful of seeds that you eat? In that case, we think perhaps this masala pumpkin seed recipe from Healthy Family Matters might be a great choice for you! They show you how to combine several oils and a few spices, including a bit of nut flavouring, to give the seeds a flavour where “spiced” refers to a uniquely combined taste rather than an actual spicy kick.

9. Lime juice and pepper toasted pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

We’ve always been big fans of citrus recipes, but we often find that many of the citrus recipes available concentrate really heavily on lemon. That’s not a bad thing necessarily, but we’ve actually always found that we prefer lime! That’s why we loved the this lime and pepper seasoned pumpkin recipe from Be Brave, Keep Going so much. There’s something just ever so slightly tangier about lime that we think gives off a really cool taste with the bite of the pepper. Make the taste as strong or as subtle as you please by seasoning to taste!

10. Lightly salted, butter glazed pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

Were you very into the idea of having a subtle tasting, lightly salted pumpkin seed recipe but you’re not so sure about the olive oil recipe we showed you earlier on our list because you’ve never been a fan of olive oil and you find you can always taste it in a recipe, no matter the mixture? In that case, perhaps you’d prefer this alternative light tasting recipe from 17 Apart instead! They suggest lightly glazing the seeds with melted butter instead of using olive oil.

11. Pumpkin seed toffee

VIEW IN GALLERY

As if the idea of making yourself delicious homemade toffee wasn’t mouth watering enough, Taste of Home shows you how to make a deliciously unique toffee that’s perfect for fall. Rather than being pumpkin flavoured like most things are  around this time of year, however, this recipe shows you how to add some crunch to the toffee by adding pumpkin seeds to the mix! We’ve tried this one at home before too and it’s incredibly satisfying because you get sweet, salty, chewy, and crunchy all in once place.

12. Brown sugar pumpkin seed brittle with cheesecake

VIEW IN GALLERY

Have you been looking at all of these savoury and salty recipes on our list so far and appreciating how good they probably are, but also kind of wishing you could find a sugary recipe that will satiate your sweet tooth instead? Then we have a feeling you might prefer this serving suggestion from Huffington Post! They show you how to make a delicious pumpkin cheesecake but also how to make a crispy brown sugar pumpkin seed brittle that complements the cake perfectly. Of course, you could just serve one or the other, but the combination of the two makes for a wonderful blend of textures.

13. Bacon garlic pumpkin seeds

VIEW IN GALLERY

Did the garlic roasted pumpkin seeds we talked about before really catch your eye, but since you’re making them yourself, you’d kind of like to add a little extra something to really make the dish enjoyable? In that case, we’d definitely suggest taking a look at this bacon garlic recipe from Bacon Today! This recipe actually isn’t one that we’ve tried ourselves just yet, but reading over the ingredients has us wondering why we don’t see the delicious combination or bacon and garlic together in all different kinds of foods more often!

14. Quinoa pumpkin seed granola

VIEW IN GALLERY

When you started thinking about saving your pumpkin seeds to try and make them into an enjoyable dish, were you thinking more along the lines of making an actual dish or meal, rather than just a snack? Then take a look at this delicious quinoa and pumpkin seed granola! Whether you eat it on it’s own as a dry breakfast snack or, as we said earlier, make it into a meal by pairing it with peach slices in a bowl and pouring some milk over it, its got a mild taste and a satisfying crunch that goes with just about anything. Get the full instructions on BHG!

15. DIY pumpkin pie seed butter

VIEW IN GALLERY

Don’t be put off by the grey colour of this delicious spread! We promise you that, beyond being packed full of awesome nutrition, this spread is also full of taste. Serious Eats guides you through the process of blending the pumpkin seeds and mixing them with a whole host of other ingredients to create a flavourful, nourishing spread that tastes great on just about anything. Our personal favourite thing to enjoy this butter with is apple slices!

MUST DO DIYs