How to Separate and Roast Pumpkin Seeds

I am so lucky to live in an area of the world that has the pleasure of experiencing all four seasons throughout the year. It is seriously the best. At the start of EVERY new season, I get super excited and want to declare that whichever one it is, is my absolute favorite season, and at the time, I really believe it. Then fall comes along and COME ON! It’s just THE BEST, right???

There are so many amazing things about fall, and all the pumpkin spice stuff doesn’t even make my top 10. That’s how great fall is, it’s BETTER than pumpkin spice. I am not even going to get into all my reasons why fall is great. You know why. That’s like trying to explain why wine and coffee make motherhood better, it’s just understood.
Instead, I will share a tip and a recipe for one of the items that does make my top ten reasons for absolutely adoring fall, ROASTED PUMPKIN SEEDS!!! I really wanted to write a post just to share a tip that I figured out last year for how to separate pumpkin seeds from the gunk, but while I am here, why not share how I roast my seeds as well, just in case there are any pumpkin seed newbies out there. Guys, if you are just throwing your seeds in the trash after you carve your pumpkins, you are totally missing out. The seeds are SO good.

The first step to making roasted pumpkin seeds is to obviously cut open a pumpkin and scoop all the seeds and gunk out into a big bowl.


For years and years, I would then sit and pick through all the gunk to pull out the seeds and put them into a separate bowl, until last year. I was over the picking and really wishing there was a better way. I was willing to try anything, and since I usually rinse my seeds after I pick them anyway, I wondered what would happen if I poured the water right into my bowl of gunk, and guess what?? The seeds totally floated to the top! I mean it seems obvious that they would, but I had never thought to try it before. It pretty much cleans and separates the seeds at the same time!

Now you do have to put your hand in the bowl and swirl it around a bit, to get more and more seeds to float up, but it is still so much easier than individually separating them all.

I’ve noticed that not all “gunk” is created equal, and some pumpkins are definitely “gunkier” than others, so this may not work with all types of pumpkins, but it’s sure worth giving it a shot. I was pretty impressed to say the least.

After you have scooped all of your seeds off the top, and you are done mentally thanking me for this amazing new trick, pat your seeds dry with a paper towel, or put them in a colander to dry out a bit. They don’t have to be completely dry, I just don’t like them to have so much water on them before I season them.

Once dry(ish) put them back in a bowl and sprinkle them with worscestershire sauce and salt. That’s it, that’s my whole recipe. I don’t even really have measurements for you. I put on enough worcestershire sauce that they seem well coated and the salt can be sprinkled on to your taste preference.

Scoop your seasoned seeds out onto a greased rimmed cookie sheet so that they make an even layer and aren’t piled on top of each other too much. The back of a metal spoon works well for this.

Bake them at 300 for about 45 minutes, giving them a little flip every 15 minutes or so. Once they seem toasty and dry, pull them out, let them cool slightly, and enjoy! Absolutely one of my favorite fall snacks!


We’re going pretty heavy on the pumpkin decor around here, so we should have pumpkin seeds aplenty this halloween (!!!). There are so many different ways to season them up. What’s your favorite?