Creamy pumpkin pepper pasta w/ sunflower pesto
Grab ahold of your hearts my friends, this dish will be sure to steal it away.
This recipe is perfect for the cooler months, when pumpkin and peppers are primed for the picking.
Anytime I can incorporate pumpkin into dishes, I feel so appreciative for this special fruit. This incredible food has such a colorful history. Likely to have been originated in Mexico; pumpkins have been traced back to 7000-5550 B.C. They are visually something, sturdy and hearty, bear amazing cooked flesh and provide edible seeds.
What more can we ask for.
The pasta for this recipe is loaded with a flavorful pesto that is made from sunflower seeds. Toasted sunflower seeds! The pesto pasta, alone, is so special and great on its own. The pumpkin-pepper puree is a seasonal touch, to celebrate rotating available produce.
This pasta is smoky, creamy, sweet and bold – all in one. It’s a perfect gathering meal to share with loved ones, that plates beautifully. Touched off with fresh pomegranate seeds, which are blooming until the end of November – here in Texas. They add a small crunch and tartness that come even better from a whole food.
Feel free to add a small sprinkle of them, or an entire pomegranate to the pasta. They are so delicious!
Choose your favorite microgreens/sprouts/sautéed greens for garnish to add a little green to this dish. Enjoy!
Creamy Pumpkin Pepper Pasta w/ Sunflower Pesto
Ingredients
- 1 small sugar pie pumpkin, halved – with seeds and inner flesh carved out *
- 1 red bell pepper, halved – with seeds and stem removed
- 2 shallot, skin removed and whole
- 6 garlic pods, skins on
- Olive oil
- -2 tbsp for cooking
- -1 tbsp for baking
- 1.5-2 tbsp salt
- ½-1 tsp red chili flakes
- 1 ½ cup water
- 12 oz gluten free pasta – I like fettuccine for this recipe
- 2 tbsp coconut cream OR ¼ cup full fat coconut milk OR 3 tbsp sunflower cream *
- Sunflower pesto (the written recipe here is the measured portion for this dish)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees
- Prep your pumpkin and bell pepper, by cutting them in half and removing the inner flesh and seeds
- Pour about 1 tbsp olive oil into a small dish, to use for oiling up the pumpkin and bell pepper
- To your prepped pumpkin, glide on some olive oil to the inner flesh
- To your prepped bell pepper, glide on some olive oil to the outer and inner flesh
- I like to use a silicon brush for this step, you can also use your hands and rub olive oil into the flesh
- On a parchment lined baking tray, place the pumpkins flesh side down
- Bake them for 50-60 minutes *
- At the halfway mark (25/30 minutes), remove the baking tray and add the halved bell pepper (flesh side down), garlic and shallot
- Place the baking tray back in and bake for the remaining 25/30 minutes (or until lightly roasted and the pumpkin is soft)
- Remove the baking tray from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes
Now you have 2 options for the pumpkin sauce:
- The lighter version:
- To a food processor or high powered blender – add the roasted bell pepper, roasted shallot, peeled roasted garlic ( with the skins removed ) and roasted pumpkin flesh (carving out the flesh with a spoon), salt, pepper, red chili flakes, water, cream or coconut milk
- Process/blend on high until creamy smooth
- The richer version:
- To a food processor or high powered blender – add the roasted bell pepper, roasted shallot, peeled roasted garlic ( with the skins removed ) and roasted pumpkin flesh (carving out the flesh with a spoon)
- Process/blend on high until creamy smooth
- To a skillet add 2 tbsp olive oil (or 2 tbsp plant butter), on low heat
- When warmed add chili flakes, salt, and saute for 30 seconds
- Then add the pumpkin-pepper puree, increase heat to medium flame and incorporate, sauteing for a few minutes
- Add water and cream/coconut milk, saute to combine
- Cover with a lid and keep on low flame, until ready to use
- Cook pasta until al dente (a little firm, not soft!)
- Toss the cooked pasta in all of that beautiful sunflower pesto
For plating:
- Grab a plate
- Ladle in 1-2 ladles full of the pumpkin-pepper sauce and make a circle at the center of the plate
- Top with pesto pasta
- Garnish with fresh pomegranate seeds and sprouts
