PUMPKIN & PESTO PASTA SKILLET

Posted on by eefulton

Hello, you beautiful pasta dish you. Hands up if all you want on a Friday is an easy, one pot pasta dish? Me. Yep, forever. I am in love with taking flavors that are usually put in the “sweet” category & turning them upside down into something insanely savory & DELICIOUS.

I made this dish while Aaron was still in Mongolia so I ended up having a lot of leftovers. I ate this for dinner 4 days in a row & wasn’t mad about it at all. It was just so good that I had zero hard feelings over it. 

The pasta is perfectly tender, still with a bite. The sausage is a little spicy. And of course, the cheese. Maybe the best part? OR maybe the pesto drizzle is the best part? Maybe it’s all the best part? 

Hmm. Guess you’ll just have to make it to find out!

xx

ellyn 

SERVINGS: 6-8

TIME: 30 minutes

INGREDIENTS:

  • 8 oz pasta – I used orecchiette! It’s the perfect shape to grab all the goodies like the sausage & sauce!
  • ½ cup reserved pasta water
  • 1 lb italian sausage – mild or hot
  • 1 medium shallot
  • 2 large garlic cloves
  • ½ cup white wine
  • 1 cup pumpkin puree – make sure it’s only pumpkin & not pumpkin pie mix!
  • 1.5 cups half & half
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon pepper
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ½ cup shredded mozzarella
  • ¼ cup shredded romano
  • ¼ cup pesto

INSTRUCTIONS:

  1. Preheat oven to 425.
  2. Add pasta to salted, boiling water. Cook extra al dente – about 3-4 minutes less than what the package says. Reserve about a ½ cup of the pasta water. 
  3. In a large, oven-safe skillet, cook sausage through. After it’s cooked add in sliced shallot & garlic to medium heat. If there is a lot of excess grease, drain it off. 
  4. Add white wine & let reduce for 2-3 minutes. 
  5. Add in pumpkin, half & half, salt, pepper & garlic powder. Simmer & reduce for 5 minutes or until beginning to thicken. If the sauce becomes too thick, add in pasta water a couple tablespoons at a time until desired consistency! 
  6. Add al dente pasta & mix well. 
  7. Top with shredded cheeses. 
  8. Bake for 15 minutes & then broil for 3-4 to get the cheese a little brown ( ie: my love language. )
  9. Drizzle with pesto. 
  10. Enjoy!