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Have you ever had a savoury pumpkin dish? That’s right! Pumpkin recipes don’t always have to be sweet.
Pumpkin has a really earthy flavour and is part of the squash family! Pumpkin really elevates a dish without being too overpowering.
Pumpkin has a lot of moisture that’s why it is preferably in baked goods! Pumpkin also goes really well with cream which is why I thought of creating an amazing pumpkin alfredo pasta recipe to share!
Continue reading all the details on Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce…
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Fettucine alfredo is a very popular pasta dish in North America. It’s a heavy cream and parmesan-based sauce with thicker fettuccine noodles. Basic alfredo sauce is made up of butter, garlic, cream and parmesan.
In all honesty, I don’t love alfredo sauce as I feel like it’s too heavy most days but I do get a craving once in a while and boy does it hit the spot! My husband on the other hand loves this creamy pasta dish and orders it a lot when we eat out.
Have you ever had fettucini alfredo? What’s your favourite pasta sauce? I’d love to know below!
HERE IS HOW TO MAKE PUMPKIN ALFREDO PASTA SAUCE:
WHERE CAN I FIND THESE INGREDIENTS?
The ingredients to make this incredibly decadent pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce can be all found at your local store. Pumpkin is a non-perishable ingredient so if you can’t find it in your local store, you can always purchase it online!
If you’re shopping at a grocery store, you’ll need heavy cream, whole milk, butter and parmesan from the dairy section. You’ll need garlic and fresh sage leaves from the produce section. And finally, you’ll need salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and your pasta of choice from the pantry section.
One more thing, you’ll need to reserve a bit of the pasta water after you’ve cooked your pasta!
WHAT ARE THE INGREDIENTS?
The ingredients to make this pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce are:
INGREDIENTS
- Salted Butter
- Fresh Garlic
- Fresh Sage Leaves
- Salt
- Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Onion Powder
- Pure Pumpkin Puree
- Heavy Whipping Cream
- Whole Milk
- Shredded Parmesan
- Pasta Water
- 4 Servings of Cooked Pasta
WHAT TYPE OF PASTA SHOULD I USE?
As this recipe focuses solely on the sauce, you can use whatever pasta you’d like. I used fettuccine when recipe testing this but any shape of pasta you have is fine! Just a reminder when you’re cooking pasta to make sure that the water is boiling before putting the pasta in and salt the water! Pasta should be cooked al dente as you’ll cook it fully in the sauce.
*Al dente just means its slightly undercooked
WHAT IS THE TIME BREAKDOWN TO MAKE THIS RECIPE?
Not including the time it takes to cook the pasta, the time breakdown to make this pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce is:
To Prepare – this includes measuring all the ingredients and mincing the fresh garlic
Time: 7 Minutes
To Bake – this includes cooking the pasta sauce and mixing the sauce and pasta together
Time: 10 Minutes
Total time from start to finish: 17 Minutes
WHAT EQUIPMENT DO I NEED?
The equipment needed to make this pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce is quite simple. You’ll need one pot to cook the pasta sauce. As this is a recipe for 4 servings, you’ll need a slightly bigger pot like a cast iron pot. I used my favourite white Amazon dutch oven for this recipe and most of my recipes!
You’ll also need a wooden spoon or spatula to mix everything up together and tongs to add in your pasta and plate it too!
WHAT ARE THE STEPS TO PREPARE?
The steps to make this pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce are:
- Measure – all the ingredients and mince the fresh garlic
- Cook & Combine – all the ingredients in a sauce pot and add in your pasta to complete
- Plate and Serve – and enjoy!
CAN I SUB/ADD ANYTHING OUT?
This pasta sauce is super simple and uses the basic ingredients that are in standard alfredo sauce. If you want to switch up the recipe to make it vegan friendly, you could substitute the dairy. It won’t be the same texture but you can for sure substitute it for your favourite unsweetened dairy-free milk. Coconut milk is quite creamy so beware, it will definitely taste like coconut! The same goes for butter and parmesan, you can substitute it for vegan butter and parmesan!
I don’t normally cook with sage but I bought a mix of fresh herbs during my grocery trip to purchase all the ingredients for a weekend of recipe testing and found that sage was the mildest in fragrance compared to herbs such as rosemary and thyme.
Sage is still quite strong but peppery and compliments this savoury pumpkin alfredo sauce quite well. I would keep it but if you want to omit it, it’s not a big deal!
If you want to add more substance to this pasta dish, you could add some veggies or protein to the sauce or on top. Bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, and spinach are a few vegetables off the top of my head that would be great in this pasta sauce.
WHAT DOES IT TASTE LIKE?
I really enjoyed this pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce! I have to say it might not be for everything but I would make this over and over again.
This Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce is the PERFECT easy Fall inspired dish to make for yourself and/or for guests! The creaminess from the cream, milk and butter, the earthiness of the sage and pumpkin puree and the cheesiness from the parmesan cheese make this recipe the best combination for a decadent pasta dish!
HOW LONG DOES IT KEEP FOR?
This pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce keeps for up to 4 days in the fridge and up to a month in the freezer stored in an airtight container. Just keep in mind it is dairy so you want to be aware of the expiration dates of the dairy you used. As always, I recommend separating the sauce into portions to avoid opening up the pasta container often.
WHAT GOES WITH THIS PUMPKIN ALFREDO PASTA SAUCE?
Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce is perfect for someone who loves alfredo and needs a Fall kick to it! This meal is incredibly delicious to make and share with guests too! Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce is great:
- By Itself – for a savoury and rich Fall dinner
- With Fresh Bread or Rolls – on the side
- With Garlic Bread – and lots of butter
- With a Side Salad – to balance the heaviness of the pasta
- With a Side Soup – for a warm side
- Roasted Protein – for a carby dinner
- To bring to a potluck or dinner party – prepared to share with others!
WHAT ARE OTHER VARIATIONS OF PUMPKIN PASTA DISHES?
Some other variations of Pumpkin Pasta that I would love to try making are:
- Vegan Pumpkin Pasta – this recipe uses coconut milk and adds paprika!
- Pumpkin Pasta with Toasted Walnuts & Spinach – toasted crunchy walnuts and spinach is to die for!
- Sausage Meatball and Pumpkin Pasta – salty sausage compliments this savoury dish so well!
- Skinny Creamy Pumpkin Pasta – a great alternative if you want something lighter!
- Tuscan Pumpkin Pasta Sauce – a yummy dairy free pasta sauce alternative!
MORE SAVOURY PUMPKIN DINNER RECIPES?
I found so many delicious pumpkin recipes and I’m so excited to try them this year! Some other pumpkin dinner recipes that are delicious are:
- Savory Baked Pumpkin – perfect roasted Fall vegetable!
- Cheesy Pumpkin Quesadillas – pumpkin makes a great addition to cheesy quesadillas!
- Pumpkin Turkey Meatballs with Creamy Harvest Tomato Sauce – pumpkin makes a moist meatball!
- Savory Pumpkin Casserole – a great keto alternative!
- Roasted Stuffed Pumpkin – amazing for the Thanksgiving table if you have vegan/vegetarian guests!
- Vegan Pumpkin Curry – savoury everyday dinner idea!
- Savory Pumpkin Stew – a hearty bowl of pumpkin stew on a cool Fall evening!
- Crockpot Moroccan Pumpkin Chicken – tasty Fall chicken dish!
INSPIRATIONS FOR THIS DISH?
I brainstormed all of my recipe content well in advanced and was thinking of pumpkin dishes to make! I usually scroll through all my social media platforms and see whats already out there and what I can make. There are so many sweet pumpkin recipes but I wanted to incorporate at least one savoury recipe!
I love pumpkin so much and love the texture of it. The creaminess of alfredo sauce and the addition of pumpkin makes this the perfect Fall pasta dish!
HOW CAN I MEAL PREP THIS RECIPE?
This pumpkin alfredo sauce is super easy to meal prep! If you’ve ever had pasta in for lunch before, you would prepare it just the same. Make sure that you portion them into different containers and heat it up as normal.
You can seperate the pasta sauce and pasta if you’d like but putting it together is fine! During lunchtime, I would heat it up in the microwave for the first time for about 50 seconds to 1 minute then take it out and mix it around then put it in the microwave for another minute so that everything is fully heated.
COST OF THIS PUMPKIN ALFREDO PASTA SAUCE?
This Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce uses ingredients that you may already have at home. Creamy alfredo pasta sauce used very common ingredients and a whole lot of dairy! I made sauce for about 4 servings.
Based on my groceries in CAD, if you were buying EVERYTHING from scratch (exempt the seasonings):
Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce
- Salted Butter (454g) – $5.65
- Garlic (x3) – $0.95
- Sage – $2.70
- Pure Pumpkin Puree (796ml) – $4.90
- Heavy Whipping Cream (1000ml) – $6.30
- Whole Milk (1000ml) – $2.80
- Shredded Parmesan Cheese (250g) – $6.90
Total: $30.20 (not all the ingredients were used and leftovers can be used for other recipes)
As all of these ingredients are new, if you just priced out the actual ingredients used in this pumpkin alfredo pasta sauce, it would come up to about $9.50.
ANY OTHER NOTES?
No other notes for this recipe! It is super easy to make and so worth it! There’s barely any work that needs to be done for this recipe and even as a newbie cook, your guests will be blown away!
Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp Salted Butter
- 4 Cloves Garlic minced
- 4 Fresh Sage Leaves
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1/2 Tsp Pepper
- 1/2 Tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Onion Powder
- 1/4 Cup Pure Pumpkin Puree
- 1 1/2 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1 1/2 Cup Whole Milk
- 1 Cup Parmesan shredded
- 1/4 Cup Pasta Water
- 4 Servings Cooked Fettucine Pasta
Instructions
- Turning your stovetop to medium heat, in a saucepot, add in your butter and minced garlic abd whisk to combine.
- Once your garlic is now cooked and fragrant add in your sage and seasonings. Let cook for a minute.
- Slowly add and whisk together the heavy cream, whole milk and pumpkin puree. Let sauce begin to boil and thickness then reduce heat to low and allow it to simmer for about 2-3 minutes.
- Lastly, add in the parmesan cheese and whisk together. OPTIONAL: if you'd like the sauce to be a lot thicker especially if you're using dairy alternatives, you can add in a 1/2 tablespoon of pasta water and flour, mix together and add intothe sauce.
- Once sauce is at your desired consistency, add in your cooked pasta and 1/4 cup of pasta water and toss the pasta in the sauce.
- Garnish with fresh sage leaves, plate, serve and enjoy!
I hope you enjoyed reading how to make this super decadent Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce!
If you’re tired of making the same old alfredo sauce recipe or just want to vamp your standard recipe up, this is the dish you NEED to make! You’ll be surprised at how one ingredient makes a whole lot of difference!
Another awesome dish if you’re looking to opt out pumpkin, you need to try out a yummy bowl of yam gnocchi with butternut squash!
Would you try making these Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta Sauce?! Let me know below in the comments!
Xo,
Lynn
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I have never heard of this kind of dish before but it looks great. It is worth trying out. Thanks for sharing
This looks incredible! I never think to cook with pumpkin even though I love the flavour. Thanks for sharing the recipe!