Pumpkin Spectacular.

Of course we all love pumpkins in the fall. We have a ball carving them and lighting them up at night to show off to our neighbors and friends. We tend to forget that pumpkins canned or fresh actually are a superfood and a good source of potassium, magnesium, fiber, and antioxidant vitamins C and E. This squash is especially good for your ticker because it's chock-full of carotenoids that are known to reduce heart disease risk.

Remember when you carve your pumpkin to make sure you don't throw out all the yummy nutrients inside.

Here are a few great pumpkin recipes....

"Patty's Pumpkin Pudding"

Ingredients

1/4 to 1/2 cup sugar
2 to 4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger, optional
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves, optional
2 large eggs (the SuperFoods authors recommend eggs with extra omega-3s)
One 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
One 12-ounce can evaporated nonfat milk (or evaporated 2% milk)

Method

Mix all the ingredients together and pour the mixture into an 8-by-8-inch casserole. Bake it in a preheated (350 degrees Fahrenheit) oven for about 30 minutes. Don't overbake; the center should be slightly wiggly. Cool and enjoy, or refrigerate for later use.

"Toasted Pumpkin Seeds"

Ingredients

• One medium sized pumpkin
• Salt
• Olive oil

Method

1 Preheat oven to 400°F. Cut open the pumpkin and use a strong metal spoon to scoop out the insides. Separate the seeds from the stringy core. Rinse the seeds.

2 In a small saucepan, add the seeds to water, about 2 cups of water to every half cup of seeds. Add a half tablespoon of salt for every cup of water (more if you like your seeds saltier). Bring to a boil. Let simmer for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain.

3 Spread about a tablespoon of olive oil over the bottom of a roasting pan. Spread the seeds out over the roasting pan, all in one layer. Bake on the top rack until the seeds begin to brown, 10-20 minutes. When browned to your satisfaction, remove from the oven and let the pan cool on a rack. Let the seeds cool all the way down before eating. Either crack to remove the inner seed (a lot of work and in my opinion, unnecessary) or eat whole.

Gotta love Fall!

image found - media.timeoutchicago.com, ref/recipe realage.com, recipe2 - simplyrecipes.com