Thoughts of a Southern Belle: Pumpkins & Pumpkin Seeds

Today is Halloween which means a lot of you have probably been carving pumpkins (or may even currently be carving), but what do you do with the seeds? Do you throw them away? Eat them? Well, I always threw mine away until I was introducted to roasted/baked seeds. I was thinking "Ew, I'm not going to try that" at first, but once I made my own batch, boy was I wrong. They're actually not that bad. If you would like to make your own:

1) Wash the seeds (yes, it's okay to eat the shell)
2) Set your oven to 325
3) Melt butter in a bowl and add salt
4) Soak seeds in butter mixture for about 5 minutes
5) Use a cookie sheet or glass dish and spred out the seeds
6) Bake for about 5-10 minutes
7) Use a fork/spoon and move the seeds around/flip them
8) Bake for another 5-10 minutes
9) Repeats steps 7-8 until golden
10) Add salt and let cool - You can also add other seasonings to give it a different taste.

Not only are they a great snack, but they are very benefitual.
1) Prevents Osteoporosis (high in zinc)
2) Natural anti-inflammatory
3) Prevents kidney stones
4) Treatment for parasites (such as tapeworms)
5) Protects against Prostate
6) Improves bladder function
7) Drepression treatment (contains L-tryptophan)
8) Great source of magnesium (1/2 cup of seeds = 92% magnesium)
9) Lowers cholesterol (contains phytosterols)
10) Prevents against cancer
The above is found on Health Diaries

While we are talking about pumpkins, I carved three of my own this year. One of which I submited to a contest, you can find it here.

Zombie Hand