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Rachel Ray is a really great resource for meals that come together quickly and are easy to make! I use her 365: No Repeats recipe book often and find it to be a great tool. It has survived quite a few cookbook purges! I hope this Rachel Ray pasta recipe makes its way to your dinner table soon.
I was a little concerned when I first read this Rachel Ray pumpkin sausage pasta recipe. I mean, how are Italian sausage, canned pumpkin and a whole bunch of holiday spices going to all work out as an Italian pasta dish? Well, I’m still not sure why everything goes together so well but it does! You definitely have to try this one. One word of advice, go heavy on the Parmesan cheese at the end. Yum-O.
Recipe name: Pumpkin Pasta by Rachel Ray
Source: Food Network
Servings: 4-6
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon
- 1 pound bulk sweet Italian sausage
- 4 cloves garlic, cracked and chopped
- 1 medium onion, finely chopped
- 1 bay leaf,
- 4 to 6 sprigs sage leaves, chopped
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 1 cup chicken stock, canned or paper container
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- 1/2 cup (3 turns around the pan) heavy cream
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg, ground or freshly grated
- Coarse salt and black pepper
- 1 pound penne, cooked to al dente
- Parmesan cheese
Directions
Heat a large, deep nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add 1 tablespoon of olive oil to the pan and brown the sausage in it. Transfer sausage to paper towel lined plate. Drain fat from skillet and return pan to the stove. Add the remaining tablespoon oil, and then the garlic and onion. Saute 3 to 5 minutes until the onions are tender.
Add bay leaf, sage, and wine to the pan. Reduce wine by half, about 2 minutes. Add stock and pumpkin and stir to combine, stirring sauce until it comes to a bubble. Return sausage to pan, reduce heat, and stir in cream. Season the sauce with the cinnamon and nutmeg, and salt and pepper, to taste. Simmer mixture 5 to 10 minutes to thicken sauce.
Return drained pasta to the pot you cooked it in. Remove the bay leaf from sauce and pour the sausage pumpkin sauce over pasta. Combine sauce and pasta and toss over low heat for 1 minute. Garnish the pasta with lots of shaved cheese and sage leaves.