Roasting Sunflower Seeds
Tips for Roasting Sunflower Seeds
Have you ever thought of roasting sunflower seeds? If you love sunflower seeds but are a little bored with just eating them plain from the store then you might try roasting them. Yeah, that’s right roasted sunflower seeds!
If you happen to be a lover of the beautiful sunflower, as so many of us are, then an added benefit are the seeds you can use for a wonderful snack. There are lots of good reasons to go to the trouble of roasting sunflower seeds yourself. First, given these tough economic times, anytime that you can find a way of saving money you should. Second, why let the seeds go to waste, when they can bring your family joy. Finally, the most important reason is that homemade roasted sunflower seeds have their own unique flavor that you can help develop yourself.
So here’s how to do it:
Pick the sunflowers: Begin by picking the seeds. Sunflowers typically bloom in the summer so you should probably wait until the summer is nearly done before picking them. You will need at least a pound to make it worth your while. Make sure that you select out the unhealthy or open seeds.
Did you know? Did you know that what we call “sunflower seeds” are actually the fruit of the sunflower and not the seed? The true sunflower seed is contained in a kernel inside of the plant.
Salting the seeds: In order to salt the seeds you should get a saucepan and fill it with water. Then, mix in 1/3 cup of salt. (As you experiment with roasting sunflower seeds, you can either increase this amount or decrease it to your liking.) Leave the seeds in overnight and then strain them in morning. Make sure that you get them nice and dry.
Preparing them for the oven: Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Preheating is important so that you do not get an uneven amount of roasting.
While you are waiting for the oven to reach its desired temperature, prepare a cookie sheet by lining it with foil. Some people like to spread a bit of margarine across the bottom of the cookie sheet to prevent sticking, but in my experience, this is wholly unnecessary.
Spread the seeds out as evenly as possible. Some people take this opportunity to add other spices like garlic salt or ginger, but I’ve always been a bit of a purest. I much prefer the simple taste of moderately salted sunflowers.
An unusual tip: One of the more unusual ingredients I’ve heard people adding is cinnamon. These people say this is just outstanding, but for me the taste of the sunflower does not mix well with cinnamon. But as they say, different strokes for different folks.
Let the Roasting Begin: In my experience the perfect amount of time for a properly preheated oven is 23 minutes, but really you should start checking your seeds at about five minute intervals starting at the 18th minute. When the sunflowers have that nice toasty look but are not yet showing signs of burning, they are done.
If some of the sunflowers at the edges start to darken with burn marks, it is definitely time to take them out.
Let them cool: Let them cool for about a half hour and then they are ready to eat.
A great use for roasted sunflower seeds: Sunflower seeded bread. If you’re a bit of a baker, or even if you are not, a great recipe for using your sunflower seeds to really spice up a classic is to take some of your roasted sunflower seeds and to stick some of them into a the unbaked dough of a French loaf. You can decide on how much you like, some people go way overboard to the point where its more seed than bread, but just a few tasty sunflowers baked in can really make you the talk of your circle of friends. I even know of someone that started to make a little bit of extra cash selling her loaves to the local coffee shop.
Whatever you decide to do just go with the flow, after all that is, what the sunflower does when it turns its head to follow the sun everyday.