What to Do With Leftover Pumpkin Seeds? Make Dinner.
Stuck with a plethora of leftover pumpkin seeds from your hallowed-out gourd but can’t stomach the thought of another round of pepitas? Make dinner. Jocon, sometimes referred to as “Mayan Stew,” is a Central American classic that is essentially a saucy molė, the seeds and tomatillos forming the base of a smooth and mildly tart (and high protein!) soup for your child. And since we’re all about taking traditional recipes and enhancing them for toddler tastes and dietary needs, we’ve also stuck some greens into the mix–it’s like a full day’s nutrition in a single bowl!
- 4 Tomatillos
- Chicken (use what you’ve got; otherwise, two breasts or thighs will be plenty)
- 25 Pumpkin Seeds (see Notes about alternatives)
- Sesame Seeds
- 3 stalks Spinach (or Kale)
- 2 cups Chicken Broth
- 1 small Onion
- 1 small Red Pepper
- dried Cilantro
- dried Chives
- dried Mint or Oregano
- 2 Tortillas
- If using chicken pieces with skin on and/or bone intact, remove either or both.
- Remove the husks from the tomatillos, then wash and scrub the exterior of the fruit until the sticky residue is removed.
- Dice onion and pepper into small pieces; remove stems from a handful of spinach.
- Run the tortillas under your faucet once or twice to make them soggy. Set aside.
Place tomatillos in a small pot of water, then pour enough water into the pot so that it reaches roughly the midpoint of the tomatillos. Set the water to boil, and cook for 4-5 minutes.
Flip the tomatillos over so the top half of the fruit is now submerged in water; cook for another 4-5 minutes. Remove the tomatillos from the pot and set aside to cool.
In the same pot you used for the tomatillos, pour in the chicken broth and return to a rigorous boil. Drop in your chicken pieces, making sure the pot liquid covers the poultry; cover the pot with a lid; and turn off heat. Cooking time for chicken by piece/cut type can be found here.
When done, drain excess liquid from chicken and allow the pieces to cool.
While the chicken and tomatillos cool, set a pan to Medium High; when hot, throw in the pepitas and a smattering of sesame seeds and stir constantly to avoid sticking. Cook for 3-4 minutes, or until seeds appear lightly toasted.
- Scrape seeds into a blender, food processor, or coffee grinder. Pulverize the seeds until they are the consistency of ground coffee or flour.
- Clean out the pan you used to cook the seeds, then pour in some oil, and heat to Medium. Once hot, dump in your onion and peppers, cooking until soft and translucent, roughly 4-5 minutes.
- While onions and peppers cook, place tomatillos; ground pumpkin and sesame seeds; spinach leaves; about half of the broth from the pot; the wet tortillas; and a ton of chives, cilantro, and mint or oregano, into a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth.
- Shred or dice chicken into pieces safe and/or appealing to your child and return to the pot with the broth; add in the peppers and onions. Pour in the contents of the blender; stir to mix well. Heat the pot to a slow boil, then reduce heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, or until the sauce has thickened.
- Be sure and test the stew to make sure the consistency and flavor are to you and your child’s liking.
Brad (the Dad) is the founder and Chief Recipe Officer of New Dad's Kitchen. His own cooking/feeding journey started humbly during his son's infancy, preparing and managing his son's bottle intake in order to support his wife; it has since blossomed into a full-on passion to feed his child and family delicious and healthy meals that can satisfy both a toddler and his very tired parents.
