Creamy Herbed Pumpkin Pasta
It’s the perfect season for quick dinners and warm bowls of wholesome, filling carbs covered in a creamy sauce.
Creamy sauce without real cream, that is. Best of both worlds right here!
Whole-grain pasta, lots of pumpkin and garlic, and some cashews actually pack a lot of nutrition and protein, as you can see in the nutrition facts. Herbs also have lots of health benefits, and this recipe is full of them! The nutrition numbers are even greater if you eat the whole pot, instead of dividing it into six servings as suggested. Not that just the two of us ever eat recipes written for 6 people in one sitting…
Lots of herbs and spices come together quickly to create a comforting pumpkin sauce for pasta.
- 16 oz whole wheat pasta (penne or bowties are nice)
- 2 tbsp minced garlic
- 2 tbsp tomato paste (or 1/4 cup tomato sauce, if that's what you have on hand)
- 1 15 oz can pumpkin
- 1.5 cups unsweetened almond milk
- 1.5 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1.5 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/2 tsp parsely
- 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (reduce or omit if making for spice-sensitive children)
- 1/2 cup cashews
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast (optional)
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Cook pasta.
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While pasta is cooking, saute garlic in a splash of water for about 2 minutes. Add tomato paste and saute 1 minute more.
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Blend cashews in a high speed blender with 1 cup of water until smooth. Add cashew milk to pan with pumpkin, almond milk, and all remaining ingredients. Cook over medium heat until very well combined and slightly thickened.
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Pour over hot pasta. Let sit about 5 minutes for sauce to thicken even more.
Homemade cashew milk, made by following the recipe, is the only thing I know to give the proper consistency. Using store-bought cashew milk will not thicken it the same way.
Soak cashews for a couple hours in advance if you don't have a high-speed blender.
Recipe adapted from Zen and Spice.
