Pumpkin sheet pan nachos are the perfect appetizer for the fall season. They taste delicious and are a great way to sneak in extra vegetables and nutrition.
‘Tis the season for all things pumpkin. In our home, this means a whole lot more than just pumpkin spiced lattes and baked goods.
Although we love those things too, pumpkin is a delicious squash that can be used in almost every dish.
Sautéd in butter or coconut oil, small pie pumpkins taste a lot like butternut or acorn squash. It makes these ordinary sheet pan nachos a little more festive for the autumn season.
I brought them over to my sister’s house as an appetizer for a barbecue, and they were gone in minutes!
All things fall
I am doing this post in collaboration with several of my blogging friends. Read all the way to the end for some more fall appetizer recipe inspiration!
Pumpkin sheet pan nachos ingredients
For the pumpkin
1/2 small pie pumpkin, peeled and diced
3 tablespoons coconut oil
For the chicken
4 cups cooked chicken
1/4 teaspoon salt
For the nachos
9 ounces tortilla chips
6 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 jalapeno, sliced
1/2 small red onion, diced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 whole lime
4 ounces feta cheese
pumpkin sheet pan nachos instructions
For the pumpkin
- Peel the pumpkin. I use a regular vegetable peeler, and peel a pumpkin just like I would a butternut squash, apple or potato.
- Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds.
- Dice half of the pumpkin into small bite size pieces. (I boiled the other half of my pumpkin on the stove and then pureed it. Now I can throw it in my sourdough pancakes, pumpkin soup, or feed it to my baby.)
- Sauté the diced pumpkin and the 3 tablespoons of coconut oil in a large skillet (I prefer to use cast iron.) over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until almost soft. The pumpkin will be cooking a little more with the nachos in the oven, so don’t overcook them. You want the diced pieces to retain their shape and not turn into mush.
For the chicken
You can use a whole chicken, chicken breasts, legs, thighs, pretty much any part of the chicken!
If the chicken you are using is completely unseasoned, sprinkle it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
I made mine a few hours before in the pressure cooker, with only water, so it definitely needed some seasoning. I used a whole chicken, and set the rest of the meat aside for a future meal. Never a bad thing in our large (and hungry!) family.
Assemble the nachos
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Spread 9 ounces of organic tortilla chips into a large sheet pan.
- Top the chips with the cooked chicken, shredded cheese, diced red onion, sliced jalapeño and the sautéd pumpkin.
- Bake the nachos for 15 minutes.
- Remove the sheet pan from the oven and allow the nachos to cool for a few minutes. Sprinkle on the feta cheese and fresh cilantro.
- Finish the nachos off with the juice from one lime.
A word on the ingredients for pumpkin sheet pan nachos
Pumpkin
For our family, pumpkin is a staple all fall and winter long. We use them in smoothies, meatloaf, granola, soup, lattes, sourdough pancakes, and more. You can sneak it in so many recipes. Its healthy, filling and CHEAP, especially at the end of the fall season!
When most people are getting rid of their front porch pumpkins, I’m in the store throwing the rest of the clearance pie pumpkins into my basket. They keep for months in a cool dry place.
Tortilla Chips
We use tortilla chips pretty regularly in our home, but always go for the organic options. One of the things I’m pretty serious about avoiding are genetically modified ingredients, or GMO. Conventional tortilla chips are full of them, in the corn and in the oils they’re cooked in. Brands that have the organic certification aren’t allowed to use anything genetically modified.
I also look for brands that have very few ingredients.
Feta cheese
The concept of using feta cheese in a Mexican inspired dish is actually pretty new to me. Recently I went to a potluck taco dinner with friends, and someone brought a tub of feta cheese for their accompaniment. At first it struck me as a little odd. After smothering my chicken, vegetables, salsa and sour cream with crumbled feta cheese, I wondered where that combo had been all my life. Seriously, it is a match made in culinary heaven.
Cheddar cheese
I prefer to use extra sharp and organic.
I never buy cheese that is pre-shredded, because it is coated with cellulose. This blocks moisture and prevents packaged shredded cheese from forming a massive clump. Unfortunately, it also prevents it from melting properly, and who knows the health effects of consuming it?!
Lime juice and cilantro
No Mexican meal is ever complete without fresh lime juice and cilantro. They transform ordinary food that is “meh” into something so fresh and delicious. We almost always have these two things on hand in our home.
Check out my other pumpkin posts and recipes
Roasted Pumpkin and Acorn Squash Soup
Print the recipe pumpkin sheet pan nachos
Pumpkin sheet pan nachos
Ingredients
For the pumpkin
- 1/2 small pie pumpkin, peeled and diced
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
For the chicken
- 4 cups cooked chicken
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
For the nachos
- 9 ounces tortilla chips
- 6 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 jalapeno, sliced
- 1/2 small red onion, diced
- 1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1 whole lime
- 4 ounces feta cheese
Instructions
For the pumpkin
- Peel the pumpkin. I use a regular vegetable peeler, and peel a pumpkin just like I would a butternut squash, apple or potato.
- Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out the seeds.
- Dice half of the pumpkin into small bite size pieces. (I boiled the other half of my pumpkin on the stove and then pureed it. Now I can throw it in my sourdough pancakes, pumpkin soup, or feed it to my baby.)
- Sauté the diced pumpkin and the 3 tablespoons of coconut oil in a large skillet (I prefer to use cast iron.) over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes, or until almost soft. The pumpkin will be cooking a little more with the nachos in the oven, so don't overcook them. You want the diced pieces to retain their shape and not turn into mush.
For the chicken
- You can use a whole chicken, chicken breasts, legs, thighs, pretty much any part of the chicken!
- If the chicken you are using is completely unseasoned, sprinkle it with 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
- I made mine a few hours before in the pressure cooker, with only water, so it definitely needed some seasoning. I used a whole chicken, and set the rest of the meat aside for a future meal. Never a bad thing in our large (and hungry!) family.
Assemble the nachos
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
- Spread 9 ounces of organic tortilla chips into a large sheet pan.
- Top the chips with the cooked chicken, shredded cheese, diced red onion, sliced jalapeño and the sautéd pumpkin.
- Bake the nachos for 15 minutes.
- Remove the sheet pan from the oven and allow the nachos to cool for a few minutes. Sprinkle on the feta cheese and fresh cilantro.
- Finish the nachos off with the juice from one lime.
Notes
- You can use a whole chicken, chicken breasts, legs, thighs, pretty much any part of the chicken!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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Hi Lisa,
I’m a huge fan of your endeavors!
I made the peppers substituting black beans (made in instant pot) instead of beef.
I roasted the pumpkin the day before and refrigerated it. I used some of it in tomato sauce made to go with eggplant parmesan, and as you’ve said, it disappears and no one knows that pumpkin was incorporated.
The pumpkin texture is so much better roasted.
The peppers are so tasty! I took a photo to share with a friend.
Meanwhile now that it’s fall I’ve stated a sourdough starter, mixed the dough for English muffins.
Planning to cook my way through all your pumpkin/sourdough recipes.
You’re an inspiration, thank you!
This recipe looks amazing and simple enough to try myself. Thanks for sharing!
Denise @ theactivehabitat.com
SUCH a creative idea!! These sound delicious. I can’t wait to try this recipes – it’s perfect for fall!!
xo Michael