I love seeds. I eat a lot of them. Maybe you have noticed. I also like to save the seeds from things I eat. It is a habit I picked up from my mother. She sprouts them around the kitchen or gifts them to neighbors. Sometimes she will forget which seeds are from what so she ends up with these mystery plants. Which is pretty fun. One time, she planted some seeds she had found in my bedroom out by the pool. They really took off. It was quite the scandal in our little suburbia. Clearly my mother is very trusting and completely innocent. I do not have the yard space my mother does so most of the seeds I save never make their way back into the dirt. I like to roast them. I like crunchy snacks plus seeds are full of fiber and nutrients. It’s a shame to just throw them away. And roasting isn’t just for pumpkin seeds in the fall. Summer is here for this. Squash, melon and even pepper seeds roast up quite well. Little bit of oil and some salt is all you truly need but you can get creative and add other spices or even nutritional yeast for the cheesy vibe. After roasting you can throw them in your coffee grinder and add the results to your favorite spice rub. You know, for all that summertime bbqing. If you are like me (less inclined to cook over an open flame while it is well over 100 degrees outside) you can just sprinkle them on everything or eat them like popcorn. Your call.

Day 162: daikon kimchi, cantaloupe, cucumber, avocado, cilantro and sunflower sprouts. Topped with tamari roasted cantaloupe and mystery squash seeds.

If you want to roast your own seeds just scoop them out, rinse them off before you spread them out on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with a little oil of your choosing (I used coconut because I have a ton of it), season it up or splash some tamari on them and pop in the oven for 10 minutes at 325 degrees. You’ll want to disrupt them a little but during this time. Just push them around the pan once to make sure they roasty all over. If they need more color on them let them hang out in the oven for another 5-10 minutes. Pro tip: let them cool before putting them in your mouth. May sound obvious but I, myself have been guilty of skipping this crucial step.