in

Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

It’s a very pumpkin week here on 1IC… How better to follow up double-pumpkin cornbread muffins than with a creamy pumpkin pasta sauce?

Okay – let’s be honest. We’re all a little leery about the idea of making a pasta sauce with pumpkin puree, right? It just seems like a weird paring with pasta. Today, however, I hope to quell your apprehensions because this sauce has become one of my new favorites. There are so many layers of great flavors.

First, there’s the Alfredo-like creaminess that comes from tahini, boosted with the umami of caramelized mushrooms and onions, all balanced beautifully by the brightness of the tomato and pumpkin purees. Toss with fettuccine, then garnish everything liberally with some fresh parsley and toasted pecans – in addition to being incredibly easy to make, this sauce is rich, decadent, and seriously delicious.

Pumpkin_Pasta

Pumpkin_Pasta_Overhead

Makes 4-5 servings

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 cups white or crimini mushrooms
  • 1 medium yellow onion
  • 3 cloves garlic
  • 2 tablespoons soy sauce
  • 1 cup tomato sauce/puree
  • 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
  • 1/4 cup tahini
  • 2+ cups water
  • 1 tablespoon dried oregano
  • Chopped parsley, for garnish
  • Chopped toasted pecans, for garnish
  • 1 pound whole wheat fettuccine

Step One

Mince the garlic and finely chop about 2 cups of mushrooms along with a yellow onion. Add these to a large skillet heated with a tablespoon of olive oil and a splash of water. Sauté over medium heat until the mushrooms reduce and the onions turn translucent — about 8 minutes. At this point add in 2 tablespoons of soy sauce and a tablespoon of dried oregano directly onto these ingredients and give this 1-2 minutes to simmer.

Step Two

Next, pour in 1 cup of tomato puree, a full (15 oz) can of pumpkin puree, 1/4 cup tahini, and a liberal amount of fresh water (2 cups to start). That’s basically it (I told you this sauce was easy)! Two notes, however:

1) Give it AT LEAST 30 minutes to simmer, preferably 45 minutes. The tomatoes need to cook off their acidity and the flavors need to meld together. 2) It will definitely thicken as it cooks, and you’ll want to add water liberally to maintain the pasta sauce consistency – if it begins to resemble an orange-colored gravy, add more water (and don’t forget to stir regularly)!

Step Three

Somewhere around the 30-minute mark, start cooking some pasta. You *could* use thin pasta like spaghetti but the general rule is that cream sauces such as this one do better with with wide, flat pasta because they hold the sauce better. When the pasta is cooked according to package instructions, simply drain and then transfer right into the skillet, using tongs to gently coat the pasta with the sauce.

Step Four

Garnish with some fresh chopped parsley and chopped toasted pecans. Seriously, this makes all the difference and takes the pasta to another level. You can either choose to garnish the entire pan (as shown) or each individual bowl, then dig in and enjoy!

#carbs

Given the nature of pasta, it’s best to serve immediately. However, the sauce itself can definitely be made ahead of time and will only get better after a day of refrigerating.

Pumpkin_Pasta_Pan

Pumpkin_Pasta_Top

12 Comments

Leave a Reply
  1. I LOVE pumpkin in pasta – and I bet the tahini adds some oomph and body to it. This looks like something I absolutely have to make!

  2. Andrew… like all your great recipes, this sounds so delicious! Can’t wait to make it.

    Thanks for providing us with so many wonderful recipes and meals.

    All the best…

  3. This recipe sounds great, but I can’t get a can of pumpkin puree here in the Netherlands… could this be made with home made pumpkin puree? Do you have a recipe for pumpkin puree?
    Thank you so much for your beautiful site and great recipes!

    • It definitely could be make with homemade puree! I don’t have a recipe but a quick Google search should turn up dozens.

  4. Thank you so much for this recipe. I was just having trouble of what to prepare for dinner and I guess this is just perfect. My kids love pasta and adding pumpkin will add more nourishment. I do hope I get this right. Again, thank you.

      • I am also allergic to peanuts and avoid all nuts due to contamination. Sorry I should have mentioned that first. And, sorry i sent the same questions twice.

      • I take raw cashews and blend smooth. Add cream and preferred spices. In skillet, I cook mushroom (any kind. About a cup) and one medium onion chopped, cook until done nicely. Add soy sauce (few tablespoons) and a couple tsps olive oil. Pour cashew sauce into
        The mushrooms. Don’t cook it once cashews are in in it. Ruins it.
        Cook spinach or whole wheat noodles. Add sauce to the drained noodles and enjoy. Very good.

  5. Made this last night and brought it for lunch today. Really delicious! You were right, letting it sit overnight made a world of difference in allowing the tahini to meld with the other flavors. I went a little crazy on the quantity of mushrooms and kept the sauce chunkier than you probably did. I found it gives the sauce a “meaty” kind of texture I’m quite liking. Thanks again for this recipe 🙂

Leave a Reply to Andrew Olson Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins with Pumpkin Butter Glaze

Mini Vegan Sweet Potato Pies