Gross and gooey

not to mention slimy and yucky, but one of the best parts of Autumn is when you carve the pumpkins and roast the seeds. Our pumpkins had been patiently waiting to be turned into lanterns for Halloween, but the weather has been so nippy and damp that we were hoping a good day would come along so the that the MESS would be outside on the porch steps and not inside on the kitchen countertop. But alas, the kids could not wait. (Of course, today the sun is out and temperatures are rising.) So last night, we pulled out the carving knife and went to work.

A bit of hard work, some sharp utensils, and some extra muscle gave us two very traditional faces to keep us company in the coming week. Aly's pumpkin was promptly named Charlotte. To me she looks like she is slobbering a bit too much.Brandan wasn't looking for a traditional name either...his is Bob O'Lantern, but Bob's fangs actually seem to create a dangerous, happy-go-lucky grin.
Our countdown has begun and our eerie recipes await a proper day (one that is finally not in the middle of the week!) to celebrate next Saturday!

But in the meanwhile, we will snack upon our tasty pumpkin seeds that we roasted last night. Sound good? Here's the recipe we use:

• 4 cups pumpkin seeds, rinsed and dried
• 1/2 cup margarine, melted
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup white sugar, divided

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Combine the pumpkin seeds, margarine, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl; stir to coat the seeds. Spread the seeds in a single layer in a 10x15 inch jelly roll pan.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes; stir and return to oven for 15 minutes more; remove from oven and sprinkle 2 tablespoons sugar over the seeds; stir to coat. Return to oven and bake another 15 minutes before removing again to sprinkle with remaining sugar and stirring. Bake another 15 minutes. Allow to cool before serving. Store leftover seeds in an airtight container.

ENJOY!!