Pumpkin Rigatoni

Dive into a bowl of creamy, dreamy pumpkin rigatoni made with fresh pumpkin. Enjoy fresh seasonal fall flavors with a creamy pumpkin pasta recipe with few ingredients. And add kale and peas to add some greens. Two sauce options (one nut-free) are available!

Today, I walked to our local grocery store to buy a pumpkin pie pumpkin for my pumpkin rigatoni recipe. Since I live five miles from the store, I hoped to find a small pumpkin to make tonight's dinner. Little did I know, the smallest one would require me to walk home while lifting weights. But, this creamy pumpkin pasta recipe is so delicious, you will want seconds. 

Jump to:

• Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin vs. Carving Pumpkin 
• Pumpkin Rigatoni Ingredients
• Recipe Ingredient Substitutions
• How to Make Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
• Recipe FAQs
• Tips
• Love These Yummy Vegan Pasta Recipes
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Reviews

Although I prefer to use a real pumpkin for my pumpkin rigatoni, pumpkins are not always in season. And, I can tell you I love this creamy pumpkin pasta enough to eat it all year round.

So, organic pumpkin puree works for this recipe out of season, or if you are in a hurry and don't have time, roast a pumpkin.

Pumpkin Pie Pumpkin vs. Carving Pumpkin 

A pie pumpkin is small and packed full of flesh, making it a good choice for cooking. The pulp also has a better texture (less grainy) and is sweeter.

Compared to carving pumpkins, pie pumpkins, or sugar pumpkins, they are smaller and easier to bake: ... Pulpy, sweeter flesh on the inside.

Also, I like to use fresh sage; again, sage is often tricky to find off-season. If you enjoy sage as much as I do, you can freeze it. Usually, I do this when I buy an entire package of sage, and I only need half the box to cook with. You can also use dried sage if you don't have fresh sage.

Pumpkin Rigatoni Ingredients

This delicious recipe has very few ingredients, and it is simple to make. Even the dog was interested.

• Pie Pumpkin: Pie pumpkins tend to have a sweeter, richer flavor than a carving pumpkin. Carving pumpkins will likely have a sort of bland, maybe a little bitter flavor. If you've got the option, always choose a pie pumpkin over a carving pumpkin for baking.
• White Onion: White onion has a strong flavor, but when roasted becomes caramelized.
• Shallot: Shallots have a mild flavor but when combined with white onion and garlic, a magical thing occurs, and the flavors are incredibly deep.
• Garlic: I always use fresh garlic cloves whenever possible.
• Nutritional Yeast: Nutritional yeast is the cheesiness of the pasta sauce.
• Sage Leaves: Fresh sage leaves are in season and available in the produce section.
• Raw Cashews: I use raw cashews as the cream for the pasta sauce; however, there is a nut-free option provided in the recipe.
• Vegetable Broth: I buy organic vegetable broth in bulk at Costco, because I use it so often.
• Rigatoni Pasta: I used whole wheat pasta for this rigatoni pumpkin pasta recipe.
• Salt/Pepper: Salt and pepper enhance the flavors of the pumpkin pasta sauce. Add to taste.

Recipe Ingredient Substitutions

• Since everyone doesn't eat nuts or has allergies, there are modifications for this recipe to make it nut-free as well in the recipe. 
• Instead of using nuts and vegetable broth, I combine plant milk with a small amount of gluten-free flour, corn starch, or arrowroot powder as a thickening component. 
• To avoid the flour clumping with the plant milk, I recommend blending the plant milk and flour before adding the other ingredients. As a result, the sauce thickens without the clumps. 
• Good choices are acorn squash, hubbard squash, butternut squash, buttercup squash, or calabaza. Sweet potatoes are also a good option as a substitute for pumpkin.
• Choose yellow onion for a milder flavor.
• One clove of fresh garlic equals ¼ teaspoon of granulated garlic powder. The same conversion applies to dehydrated or freeze-dried garlic or even minced refrigerated garlic.
• Try red onion if you don't have shallots.
• A general rule of thumb for the dried-to-fresh herb ratio: Use one-third the amount of dried herb for the fresh herb called for in the recipe. For example, if you convert fresh sage to dried sage in a recipe that calls for 1 Tablespoon of fresh sage, use 1 teaspoon of dried sage instead.
• Any type of pasta works well with this recipe.

Other Optional Ingredients:

• Red pepper Flakes: I added red pepper flakes for a little extra flavor and heat.
• Raw Sage Leaves: Add fresh sage leaves for additional flavor and garnish.
• Vegan Parmesan Cheese: I make my own vegan parmesan cheese to sprinkle on top
• Peas: I added frozen peas in the last few minutes of cooking the pasta.
• Kale: The kale is added at the end and wilts into the pot with teh hot pasta and pasta water.

How to Make Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
2. Cut the pumpkin in half from the stem down.
3. Remove the seeds and stringy flesh (save seeds for roasting).
4. Place both halves of the pumpkin cut side down on the baking pan.
5. Add onion, shallot, and garlic cloves to the baking sheet around the pumpkin halves.
6. Cover with aluminum foil tightly
7. Bake for 45 minutes
8. Remove from oven and leave covered for an additional 10 minutes, so it can continue cooking outside the oven.
9. Drain the cashews and rinse them (cashews do not need to be soaked if using a quality high-speed blender)
10. Remove the pumpkin flesh from the skin (one side of the pumpkin should yield enough pumpkin depending on the size of the pumpkin)
11. Add pumpkin, onions, garlic, shallot, cashews, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and vegetable broth to a high-speed blender; blend on high until smooth.
12. If making the nut-free version, blend the plant milk and flour, cornstarch, or arrowroot powder. Then add the remaining ingredients and blend again. (skip the nuts and vegetable broth)
13. Set aside (If you make the sauce in advance, put it in the refrigerator and reheat while the pasta cooks) If using immediately, leave it at room temperature

1. Cook pasta according to package directions, reserving 1 cup of pasta water before draining.
2. If using frozen peas, cook with the pasta in the last 3 minutes.
3. Rinse pasta (with peans if using)
4. Return pasta to pan; pour in 1 cup of reserved pasta water, then sauce.
5. If adding kale, add it now. It will wilt immediately as it combines with the hot pasta and reserved pasta water.
6. Stir to combine; add chopped sage.
7. Serve with small fresh sage and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes and vegan parmesan cheese.

Not only is the creamy pumpkin pasta recipe easy to make, but it also takes very little time to throw together. And I'm all about making a delicious fall pasta recipe quickly. 

Recipe FAQs

Tips

• Fresh sage is always the best bet, but if it isn't in season, dried works. Just remember the rule: ⅓ the amount of dried herbs is equal to fresh herbs.
• Even though I only use half a pumpkin pie pumpkin for this pumpkin rigatoni recipe, roast both sides, double the sauce, freeze it, or use the other half for another dish like pumpkin hummus. YUM.
• Roast the onions and the pumpkin simultaneously; when in doubt, always cook veggies together to maximize your space and time. 
• Choose gluten-free pasta for a gluten-free option.
• Sprinkle with vegan parmesan cheese for an added cheesy taste.
• If you don't have a high-speed blender, like my Nutribullet, soak the raw cashews overnight to make them easier to blend. Or, for a quick way to soften the cashews, boil them for 10 minutes, drain, and blend.

Enjoy this pumpkin rigatoni recipe as a quick and easy weeknight or festive holiday meal. You will love this creamy pumpkin pasta recipe!

Love These Yummy Vegan Pasta Recipes

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