Hayrides & Pumpkin Seeds :)

     Well, it's nice and cold outside here in Rochester, which means it's time to crank up the heat and throw on a nice warm hat with a huge mug of hot apple cider. It's time for crazy costumes and pumpkin carving with our loved ones. I've learned to appreciate Halloween more and more over the last few years and I think that's because I've fallen in love with Autumn decorations ;)

I'm in love with these pumpkin decorations. My
Grandma sent them to me, she got them from Hallmark!!!

    We had a pretty eventful weekend with a last minute Halloween party and pumpkin carving. It was tons of fun though!! We had a great time at the pumpkin patch, on the hayride with some nice warm donuts and some of our new friends. The party was tons of fun, I went as a mermaid and he went as a hockey player since it was so last minute. (We literally found out about it an hour before we left....) Anyhow, here are some pictures from the party and more so, the pumpkin patch!

Under The Sea...

Pumpkins!!!

On the hayride :) 

     Brody wasn't so sure about the pumpkins at first. Now he keeps trying to eat them even though he seemed oh so skeptical initially...

     We finished off our weekend today with popping the pumpkin seeds in the oven. They ended up turning out absolutely amazing, so I figured I'd share my "recipe" with you all :)

     After cleaning out our pumpkins last night, we washed the seeds off completely to get all of the extra "guts" off of the seeds. After rinsing, I spread them out on two cookie sheets to let them dry out overnight. It was a perfect amount of time for drying. This morning/afternoon I took the seeds and lightly(NOT TOO MUCH) tossed them in some extra virgin olive oil, then tossed them in enough salt to taste for my liking. 

**When I say "cookie sheet" I actually used my Pampered Chef Bar Pan that I cook everything on. It shouldn't matter in terms of cook time, though!**

     I spread them back out on the cookie sheet after pre-heating the oven to 250 and put them in the oven. I checked on them 3 times, in 15 minute intervals, moving them around and somewhat flipping them each time. The third time I checked, was about 41-42 minutes into the baking process and they were perfectly cooked at that point. I really feel it's crucial to move them and flip them around every 15 minutes, though. 

Before....

After!!! Nice and golden brown :)

     I hope you enjoy the recipe, the pictures and I especially hope everyone has a safe and Happy Halloween!! Stay tuned for more coming soon :)

P.S. Comments, Questions & Suggestions are ALWAYS encouraged and welcomed :)