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It’s the Great (Roasted) Pumpkin (Seeds)

Food Network and Utah State Extension give different oven settings for roasting pumpkin seeds, and the same method works on butternut and other hard-skinned squash; the squirrels already know.

Photo: Dmitry Makeev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0
▶ As it aired · U.S.

Watch it as it aired: Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock on this story, from The BBN Weekend Matinee at 4:38 PM ET. Cartoon anchors, real headline: the facts are The New York Times's, the jokes are ours.

Photo: Pumpkin seed
Photo: Dmitry Makeev · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · altered by BBN, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0

At a glance

  • First reported by The New York Times: “It’s the Great (Roasted) Pumpkin (Seeds)”, with reporting from Utah State University Extension, Food Network and Walmart.
  • Covered on BBN on Saturday, October 31, 2026, at 4:38 PM ET on The BBN Weekend Matinee, by Chip Darnell and Vera Bullock.

The real story

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

What BBN said about it

  1. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorTeam coverage this afternoon: the New York Times has a guide to roasting the seeds from your pumpkin, and it works on any hard-skinned squash.

  2. Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorIt's seeds, Chip. You put them in the oven.

  3. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorAt what temperature, Vera?

  4. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorFood Network says three hundred degrees for an hour and a half, and Utah State Extension says three fifty for thirty-five to forty minutes.

  5. Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorFifty degrees and fifty minutes apart. Same seed. One kitchen has it done before the other one's preheated.

  6. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorWe have footage from the archive. Not the actual pumpkin, but look at this.

  7. Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorHe's got a squirrel on the pumpkin, and the seeds are already on the ground. That's an open investigation.

  8. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorWalmart lists a five-ounce bag of roasted salted seeds at two dollars and thirty-four cents.

  9. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorRated: a crunchy eight, and I think it's the best snack in America.

  10. Vera Bullock · Co-AnchorTwo dollars and thirty-four cents. The squirrel did all that work for free.

  11. Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorRex, take us home, buddy!

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From the archive: everything BBN aired on Saturday, October 31, 2026 · the U.S. archive · all months