This Spicy Pumpkin One Pot Pasta recipe is the perfect cozy fall dinner. Use pumpkin puree and other simple ingredients to make a creamy pumpkin pasta recipe.
Quick
Beginner-friendly
You’ll Learn: How to customize this one pot pasta recipe
Worth It: Quick enough for a weeknight dinner
Bonus: Simple swaps for common diets
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- One pot pasta – I’m on a big one pot pasta kick. A few weeks ago I made a creamy meat sauce one pot pasta and now I am moving on to something more seasonal. I love the easy cooking process and clean up!
- Savory fall favorite – Pumpkin is quintessential fall! Most people think of pumpkin as an ingredient in sweet foods like pie, cupcakes, and muffins, but I love it as an ingredient in savory foods. It works particularly well in soups and sauces.
- Weeknight go to – This spicy pumpkin one pot pasta comes together in about 20 minutes. It is the perfect dish to feed your family on a busy weeknight. I think it will be great for fueling trick or treaters before they head out!
Serving Suggestions
The thing I like about a one pot pasta is that you can make it your whole meal or you can use it as a side dish. I like to serve this spicy pumpkin one pot pasta with some roasted veggies, like asparagus or brussels sprouts, and crispy prosciutto on top of the pasta.
You could easily make some roasted chicken and serve this pasta as a savory and filling side dish. If you live somewhere where you can grill in the fall, make some grilled chicken instead!
If you are making this for meal prep, I suggest pairing the pasta with sweet chicken or italian sausage, shredded chicken or some crispy chickpeas.
Once you’ve tried this delicious pumpkin pasta sauce, try this butternut squash pasta sauce or rigatoni alla vodka next!
Ingredients
- Yellow onion – the onion provides the base of flavor in your pumpkin sauce for pasta
- Olive oil – I used extra virgin olive oil, but you can use any neutral oil as well
- Kosher salt, smoked paprika, cinnamon, nutmeg – this spice blend adds the classic fall flavors as well a depth of flavor
- Crushed red pepper – the half teaspoon of crushed red pepper adds the spiciness to your pasta. Use as much or as little as you would like
- Pasta – you can use any pasta shape you would like. Whole wheat or regular are both delicious
- Canned pumpkin puree – the pumpkin puree doesn’t add much flavor, but it gives the pasta the perfect texture. Make sure it is just the puree and not pumpkin pie filling
- Tomato paste – tomato paste is packed with flavor to enhance your pumpkin pasta
- Water – you’ll add just enough water to cook and absorb into your pasta
- Cream cheese – the cream cheese is the perfect creamy and tangy addition to your pumpkin pasta
- Parmesan cheese – freshly grated is best, so I highly recommend buying a parmesan block and grating it yourself
Ingredient Substitutions
I only used onion as the base of this pasta, but you could add garlic cloves as well.
For a slightly thinner sauce, you could use heavy cream instead of cream cheese. To make this creamy pumpkin pasta sauce dairy-free, use coconut cream or coconut milk and vegan parm. These swaps will also make this a vegan pumpkin pasta sauce.
If you prefer a blended sauce, you can transfer everything to a blender or food processor before adding the pasta to the pot. You can add a splash of vegetable broth or chicken broth to help blend the sauce. You could also decide to make your pasta in a separate large pot of salted water instead at this point and combine the cooked pasta and the blended sauce in a large skillet.
For a gluten-free version, use your favorite gluten-free pasta!
How to Make
Step 1: Saute Onions and add pumpkin
Heat oil over medium high heat in a large heavy bottomed pot. Add diced onion to the warm oil and saute until soft and fragrant – stirring frequently (Image 1).
Reduce to medium-low heat and add salt, smoked paprika, cinnamon, crushed red pepper, and ground nutmeg to the large pot and stir. Allow the spices to toast for a couple minutes then add the pumpkin puree and tomato paste (Image 2) and stir again.
Step 2: Add Pasta and cook
Add the pasta and water to the pot (Image 3) and stir until evenly combined. Increase heat to high and bring mixture to a boil. Once boiling, cover the pot and reduce to a simmer.
Simmer on low for 12-14 minutes – stirring frequently. Taste the pasta to be sure its cooked aldente, then remove from the heat (Image 4).
Step 3: Add Cheeses and Enjoy
Add the cream cheese and parmesan cheese to the pot (Image 5) and cover again to let the cream cheese melt for a few minutes. After a few minutes remove the lid and stir until the cheese is evenly mixed in (Image 6).
Serve immediately with some extra tablespoons of parmesan cheese on top. Garnish with fresh sage leaves if you have them.
Storage and reheating
Serve the spicy pumpkin one pot pasta immediately or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. When ready to eat, remove from the fridge and reheat on the stovetop.
Check out these other One Pot recipes!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
You can find the full recipe below. If you make this recipe, please rate and review it in the comments, or share it with me on Instagram!
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Recipe
Spicy Pumpkin One Pot Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 yellow onion – finely diced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp smoked paprika
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp crushed red pepper
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 lb pasta
- 15 oz pumpkin puree 1 can
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 4 cups water
- 4 oz cream cheese – half of an 8oz brick
- ¼ cup grated parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Heat oil over medium heat in a large heavy bottomed pot. Add diced onion to the warm oil and saute until soft and fragrant – stirring frequently
- Reduce head to low and add salt, smoked paprika, cinnamon, crushed red pepper, and ground nutmeg to the pan and stir. Allow the spices to toast for a couple minutes then add the pumpkin puree and tomato paste and stir again.
- Add the pasta and water to the pot and stir until evenly combined. Increase heat to high and bring mixture to a boil. Once boiling, cover the pot and reduce to a simmer.
- Simmer on low for 12-14 minutes – stirring frequently. Taste the pasta to be sure its cooked aldente, then remove from the heat.
- Add the cream cheese and parmesan cheese to the pot and cover again to let the cream cheese melt for a few minutes. After a few minutes remove the lid and stir until the cheese is evenly mixed in.
- Serve immediately with extra parmesan cheese on top.
Nutrition Information
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
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