Home made pepitas from my home grown pumpkins

With all the pumpkins I have had out of my garden this year I wish I had started making pepitas earlier when I still had plenty of pumpkins left. Better late than never, I looked up how to make pepitas (roasted pumpkin seeds) on the internet to see how it was done. There were a number of ways to roast them, so I thought I would give it a go and see which way works out best. I have tried one way so far, with different seasonings. Firstly, rinse the pumpkin seeds. Some websites said you have to be meticulous, while others said it wasn't so important to get all the pumpkin 'guts' off. I laid them out on some paper towel to dry and patted them dry a bit as well. Then I took away the paper towel and laid them on a baking tray to completely dry overnight.

The following day I placed them in a bowl with a little drizzle of olive oil and mixed them together with some salt. The second time I made them I also added smokey paprika. Then I laid them out on the baking tray again and baked them at about 150 degrees C (300F)until they were a light golden brown. I think this took about half an hour. This method made pepitas which are pumpkin seeds still in the kernels (unlike the ones from the shop which have been shelled). They were crunchy and delicious. Another method which I haven't tried yet is to boil them in salted water before laying them on a baking tray to dry and roasting them. You could flavour them with any seasoning you like I guess. I hope to try things like chilli flakes and garlic as well. If you've made them before, let me know what method you tried and if it worked for you.