Pumpkin Pasta Sauce in 20 Minutes

This pumpkin pasta is ready in 20 minutes from the moment you start until serving, because the pumpkin is cut into small cubes and simmers in the sauce while the pasta cooks in water. The sauce is blended with garlic, with no cream and no cheese, so the dish is vegan.

How to make it in 20 minutes

Put a large pot of water on the heat before you pick up the knife. Cut the pumpkin, about 1 lb (500 g), into 1/2-inch (1 cm) cubes, because cubes that size soften in 12 minutes. Fry onion and garlic in olive oil, add the pumpkin and a cup of water, and cover.

While the pumpkin simmers, the pasta cooks in the water and finishes near the end of the pumpkin's cooking time. If you have cooked pumpkin left from yesterday, you save the simmering and can skip the water.

A sauce without cream

Blend the soft pumpkin with its cooking liquid using an immersion blender until the sauce is smooth. Pumpkin contains starch, so the sauce turns thick and creamy even without cream. Thin it with half a cup of the pasta's cooking water, whose starch makes the sauce cling to the pasta.

Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg. If you have pumpkin left over, you can turn it into a velvety pumpkin soup on another day.

The time assumes all the steps run in parallel: the water heats while you chop, and the pasta cooks while the pumpkin softens. Serve right away, because pumpkin sauce thickens as it stands. If the sauce is too thick, add another spoonful of cooking water each time, until it is silky. Toasted pumpkin seeds on top add crunch. Whole wheat pasta works too and gives a nuttier flavor. The amount serves four, and you can double it with a large pot and one deep skillet.

The recipe

Pumpkin Pasta Sauce in 20 Minutes

Vegan pumpkin pasta: small pumpkin cubes simmer in the sauce while the pasta cooks. 20 minutes from start to table.

• Servings 4 servings
• Prep 8 min
• Cook 12 min
• Total 20 min

Print recipe

Ingredients

• 14 oz / 400 g short pasta (penne or fusilli)
• 1.1 lb / 500 g pumpkin (peeled and cut into 1/2-inch (1 cm) cubes)
• 1 small onion (peeled and chopped)
• 3 garlic cloves (crushed)
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 1 cup water (for cooking the pumpkin)
• 1 tsp salt (for the sauce)
• 0.5 tsp ground black pepper
• 0.25 tsp ground nutmeg
• 0.5 cup pasta cooking water (for thinning)

Instructions

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

2. Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet and cook the onion and garlic for 2 minutes.

3. Add the pumpkin cubes and the cup of water, cover and simmer for 12 minutes, until the pumpkin is very soft.

4. Meanwhile, cook the pasta according to the package directions and save half a cup of the cooking water.

5. Blend the contents of the skillet with an immersion blender until smooth, and season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.

6. Toss the sauce with the drained pasta, thinning with the cooking water as needed. Serve immediately.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which pumpkin works for pasta?
Regular orange pumpkin or butternut squash. Both soften quickly when cut small.

Can I freeze pumpkin pasta sauce?
Yes, for up to three months. Thaw in the fridge and warm with a little water.

Which pasta goes with pumpkin sauce?
A short pasta with ridges, such as penne or fusilli, holds more sauce.