Pumpkin Spiced Roasted Pepitas

3.58 16 Published Sep 29, 2014, Updated Feb 02, 2024 If you like pumpkin pie spiced things, you’ll love these. They’re perfect for when a craving hits for something sweet, salty and crunchy! Pepitas, the Spanish word for pumpkin seed (pepita de calabaza) directly translates to “little seed of squash” and that’s exactly what they are! But what are pepitas? Are they the same as pumpkin seeds? I’m answering the most common pepitas questions below!

Here’s What You Need

5 ingredients, 15 minutes and you have yourself a tasty little sweet and savory treat to munch on.

pepitas – look for raw pepitas! In this recipe you can definitely substitute pumpkin seeds with the hull if that’s all you can find, the nutrition information will just be slightly different.maple syrup – the perfect natural sweetener and will help all of the delicious spices stick to the pepitas.pumpkin pie spice – you can make your own pumpkin pie spice or use store bought.olive oil – to help the spices stick to the pepitas. You can also use avocado or melted coconut oilsea salt – brings all the flavors together!

How to Make Pumpkin Spice Pepitas

Preheat Oven – Making these pumpkin spice pepitas is super simple! To start, preheat your oven to 350ºF. Toss – Then, in a large bowl, toss together your pepitas (or pumpkin seeds!) with the olive oil, maple syrup, pumpkin pie spice and sea salt. Bake – Spread the seeds evenly in one layer onto a baking sheet. Bake for 5-7 minutes and then toss the seeds. Return to the oven and bake until the seeds are crisp, another 5-6 minutes. Serve – Remove from the oven, let the seeds cool and enjoy!

Storing Seeds

Once cool, store in an airtight container on the counter or pantry for 1-2 weeks.

Serving Suggestions

I’ve been eating them by the handful, adding them into yogurt, combining them with other nuts and seeds for a homemade trail mix and using them as a topping for salads. They’re sooo good on salads!

Recipe Variations

For this batch I didn’t use seeds from an actual pumpkin. I used pepitas, hulled pumpkin seeds. You could certainly use this recipe with unhulled shells but we haven’t carved a pumpkin yet so I didn’t have any on hand.