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For me pumpkin and hazelnuts say Fall. I made a pumpkin sauce for pasta quite a while ago but for some reason I couldn’t find my recipe. This pumpkin sauce for pasta or anything else you’d like to add to the sauce, reminds me of that recipe I can’t find. It’s creamy from the pumpkin puree and cheese and the roasted hazelnuts give a nutty little crunch that balances the flavors out. It’s simply delicious. I hope you give it a try.
Pasta with Pumpkin Cheese Sauce and Roasted Hazelnuts
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup Roasted Hazelnuts, chopped
- 8-12oz Pasta, such as Pappardelle or Penne or any other preferred pasta
- ½ Onion, finely chopped
- 2 Garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tsp Dried Sage
- 6 – 8 Tbsp Butter
- 1 15oz can Pumpkin Puree
- Salt and Ground Pepper
- ½ cup Cream Cheese, soften
- ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
- Parsley, Chives and fresh Sage chopped (garnish)
Directions
- In a sauté pan, on medium heat, toast the hazelnuts. Remove. Once cooled down, the skins will fall off easily and chop the hazelnuts.
- In a saucepan, on medium heat, melt the butter. Add the onions and cook until soft. Add in the pumpkin puree and heat up. Add salt and pepper. With an immersion blender (if you don’t have one you can use a blender) blend the onions and pumpkin puree together. Add in the cream cheese and parmesan cheese and mix until melted.
- In the meantime, in a large pot of boiling salted water add in the pasta and cook until al dente. Before draining the pasta, reserved at least 1 – 1 ½ cup of the pasta water. Drain the pasta.
- In the pot with the pasta add in the pumpkin puree sauce and about ¾ up of the reserve pasta water and gently toss together to coat the pasta. Add more pasta water to the sauce, if needed, to your preferred consistency. Add additional salt and pepper if desired.
- Serve in bowls and garnish with the parsley and chives and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. This pairs well with chicken, sausage, pork and a green salad.
Enjoy ☺
Note: If you care for cream cheese feel free to use mascarpone cheese or other easily melting cheese.
