Linguine with Creamy Pumpkin Sauce and Roasted Pumpkin

Posh Market Garden Cooking Pumpkin

Makes six servings

With our fall squash and cooking pumpkins being harvested, I’ve been experimenting with our produce and trying to come up with new recipes. This one is a combination of several different pumpkin related recipes that I pulled together to create a new variation to go over pasta! Andy is not really into pasta, but he enjoyed this dish, so I thought I’d share it with you!

Ingredients 

·      Bronze cut linguine (spaghetti or Fettuccine will also work)

·      2 tablespoons unsalted butter (Irish unsalted butter is especially tasty)

·      ¼ cup minced shallot

·      2 tablespoons minced garlic

·      ¼ cup good dry white wine

·      1 ½ cups heavy whipping cream

·      1 cup pumpkin purée (to save time I use canned purée)

·      ¼ cup chicken broth

·      ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to sprinkle over the cubed pumpkin

·      ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper

·      ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper

·      ½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

·      3 cups cubed peeled fresh pumpkin (this is where the garden pumpkin comes in)

·      Olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cut a small cooking pumpkin in half, then quarter it, I do this because it makes it easier to handle and peel. Remove the seeds and strings from the center of each piece. Next peel the skin and dice the pumpkin into cubes about ½ inch to an inch in size. Line a baking sheet with foil and place the pumpkin cubes on it in a single layer, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkling a bit of salt and pepper. Roast for approximately 30 minutes or until the pumpkin is tender. If your cubes are larger you will need to cook it longer.

While the pumpkin is roasting, cook the pasta according to the directions on the package. Reserve ½ cup of pasta water.

Next make the sauce. In a medium saucepan, heat butter over medium heat until butter is melted. Add shallots and garlic; cook for three minutes. Add wine; cook for two minutes. Add cream, pumpkin purée, chicken broth, salt, white pepper and black pepper. Cook for five minutes, or until slightly thickened. Add cheese, stirring until cheese is melted.

Once the pasta is finished cooking drain the water, making sure you reserve ½ cup of pasta water in case you need to thin the sauce a wee bit. Set this water aside and return pasta to the pan. Next stir in the sauce and add the roasted pumpkin cubes. Mix well. If the sauce is too thick add a bit of the pasta water to the mix so the pasta has a light coat of the cream sauce. Plate the pasta and sprinkle with a bit more cheese. Serve with a few slices of crusty baguette or a light green garden salad. This dish also goes well with a glass of white wine. Restoration, Bookcliff and Whitewater Hill are more local go to vineyards and wineries for the best white wines! Ordinary Fellows also have a lovely chardonnay. Just a little plug for our fabulous Colorado wines!

Bon Appetit!