National Pumpkin Seed Day
National Pumpkin Seed Day
Scoop out your pumpkins to carve your Jack o’ lanterns and be sure to save the seeds to celebrate National Pumpkin Seed Day on October 5th.
Pumpkin seeds as food and even medicine can be traced back to 7,000 BCE in central Mexico. It is believed that the Aztecs and Mayans revered pumpkin seeds as the seeds of this gourd offer a wealth of nutrition and medicinal benefits.
As one of the most nutritious plant foods on the planet, pumpkin seeds pack a whopping 17% of your needed zinc and 15% of your recommended iron in just 1/4 cup. They also have an impressive amount of protein at 8.5 grams per ounce and a wealth of essential minerals like phosphorus, manganese, and magnesium.
Pumpkin seeds are so beneficial they were even included in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia during the 1800s and 1900s. After that honor, the beneficial seeds gained another in 2016 with the official formation of Nation Pumpkin Seed Day to be observed on the first Wednesday of October.
So whether you roast them with salt, or fry them in butter and sweet cinnamon sugar, be sure to have at least a handful of these delicious and nutritious seeds on October 5th for National Pumpkin Seed Day.
