I love just about anything and everything pumpkin and it’s a sure-fire way to support optimal health and wellness.

A few days ago, I was visiting my friend Marjorie and much to my delight, she had a container of homemade pumpkin soup for me.  What a fabulous and unexpected surprise!  I enjoyed it for lunch, savoring the rich flavor, with just a hint of cinnamon.

Pumpkin is rich in the powerful antioxidant beta-carotene and it’s a low-fat way for you to practice healthy eating, help prevent heart disease and certain types of cancer. And with this being peak pumpkin season, it’s the perfect time to indulge.

Want to know more about why pumpkin is so good for us and how to use it? Take a listen to this week’s audio tip for more information.

And check out this tasty pumpkin recipe:

Autumn Harvest Breakfast Bars Recipe

Yield: 8 bars

Ingredients
1/4  cup  orange juice
1/2  cup  whole dates (about 5), halved and pitted
1  cup  whole raw almonds with skins
1/2  cup  dried apricots
1/4  cup  dried plums (prunes)
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/4  teaspoon  salt
1/4  cup  raw pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1/4  cup  raw sunflower seeds

Preparation
1. Preheat oven to 300°. Pour orange juice over dates and let soak 5 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, place almonds, dried apricots, and dried plums in a food processor and pulse a few times until coarsely chopped. Add salt and dates with orange juice and pulse until mixture starts to stick together. Add pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds, pulsing a few times just to incorporate.
3. Using wet hands, scoop mixture onto a work surface and form into a log about 1 3/4 in. wide and 1/2 in. thick. Use your palms to flatten into a bar, and cut bar into 8 equal pieces.
4. Arrange pieces about 1 in. apart on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Using a heatproof spatula, turn bars over and bake another 8 minutes, or until nuts are toasted (but before fruit begins to burn). Store in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Nutritional Information:
Calories: 210 (56% from fat); Protein: 6g; Fat: 13g (sat 1.4); Carbohydrate: 22g; Fiber: 3.5g; Sodium: 76mg; Cholesterol: 0.0mg

Filed under: Antioxidants, Cancer, Heart disease, Optimal Health, Prevention, Superfoods, Vegetables