Zero, Zilch, Zip, Nada, Nil

All of these add up to 0...  nothing. Not a single Weight Watcher point!  Not a one!  

No points hanging out here!  

This is a Halloween miracle. I have two, zero point recipes here for you lucky lucky people.  So you ask yourselves... (in disbelief) Kate, how is this possible and does it taste good?  Ok, so life isn't ever really like this, but it is really late and I have been cooking and working on my halloween costume all day... so I might be a bit crazy; but not about the W.W. points.  I have been working on low and no point snacks and meals and this is my favorite so far. Please enjoy, even if you are not on W.W. and you are happy with your weight!

I know a lot of people would rather get their fill of pumpkin out of the can or pumpkin bread or soup. I also know that many people I know don't even know how to make pumpkin from a pumpkin, so let me help you out.  I love pumpkins, everything from the smell of raw to cooked, the color to the  feeling of holding a pumpkin. I love holidays (if you didn't know by now) and turkey for Thanksgiving, latkes for Hanukkah and to pumpkin for Halloween.  Now turkey and latkes are not going to work as well as pumpkin for my W.W. diet, but I will cross that delicious bridge when I get there. For now, I will enjoy my fill of pumpkin.

Kate's Roasted Zero Point Spiced Pumpkin: #1 Zero W.W. points

These are from 3 different pie pumpkins, cleaned and seed free. I recommend the Pie Pumpkins. The darker the pumpkin, the richer the flavor. 1 small to medium pie pumpkin is enough for 3 or 4 servings.

Preheat the oven to 375˚

Slice off the top and bottom of the  pumpkin and slice in half. Scoop out the seeds and slimy stuff. Slice the pumpkin into small 3 inch long slices and make sure all of the stringy stuff is off, I use a paring knife and scrape it off. Spray a cookie sheet with Pam and arrange the pumpkin slices and spray them with Pam.  Sprinkle salt, pepper, cumin and cinnamon on the pumpkin sliced and place into the oven.

Note if you very moist pumpkin: Before you put the pumpkin in the oven, fill a 9 x 13" casserole dish or baking pan with water and put it in the oven on the bottom shelf.

Bake the pumpkin for 35 to 55 minutes.  The pumpkin should be easy to pull off of the peel and soft to cut. Serve hot with spray butter.

Kate's Roasted Zero Point Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin: #2 Zero W.W. points

Preheat the oven to 375˚

Slice off the top and bottom of the  pumpkin and slice in half. Scoop out the seeds and slimy stuff. Slice the pumpkin into small 3 inch long slices and make sure all of the stringy stuff is off, I use a paring knife and scrape it off. Spray a cookie sheet with Pam and arrange the pumpkin slices and spray them with Pam.  Sprinkle with cinnamon on the pumpkin sliced and place into the oven.

Bake the pumpkin for 35 to 55 minutes.  The pumpkin should be easy to pull off of the peel and soft to cut. 

Sprinkle pumpkin pie  spice on the pumpkin and serve hot with spray butter.

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Clean off most of the pumpkin from the seeds, if there is some left don't worry, it will just add flavor.  Heat olive oil and salt in a pan. Add in the seeds and stir often. After 5 minutes, sprinkle in cumin and chilli powder or cinnamon and allspice and stir well. When the pumpkin seeds are slightly toasty in color, remove them from the heat and spread out on a foil covered cookie tray.  Bake in a oven or toaster oven for 5 or 6 minutes. You will here the seeds pop. 

While the seeds are toasting, prepare some papertowels to soak off some of the extra oil. Carefully pour the hot seeds over the papertowls and let sit for a few minutes to cool off.  Salt again and season to taste. Serve and enjoy!