I love fall foods! It seems to be the one season that has very well known and well loved produce! There are a lot of wonderful options from the list above that I could have chosen to highlight this month, but I decided to focus on the obvious… PUMPKIN!!!
Pumpkins contain all sorts of good nutrients. Just 1 cup contains 200% of your daily needs of Vitamin A! This is important in immunity, eye health and bone health. Pumpkin also contains Vitamin E, which is a nutrient that can easily be missed in people’s diets. Pumpkin is considered a starchy vegetable, which means it has a greater amount of carbohydrates than its non-starchy friends- which means it provides a significant amount of energy for a vegetable!
The best ways to eat pumpkin are to either roast your own (sugar pumpkin) OR to to buy canned pureed pumpkin. Avoid the pumpkin pie mix, especially for this recipe!!
Pumpkin Sage Sausage Pasta
Ingredients:
12 oz whole wheat noodles
1 lb chicken sausage (Italian or Sicilian)
1/2 white onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp ground sage
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
dash of cinnamon
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
1 (15oz) can pumpkin puree
1 TBSP tomato paste
2 cups spinach
2 oz parmesan cheese
How to:
Bring a pot of water to a boil.
In a saute pan, cook sausage until browned. Set aside. In the same pan, add onion and garlic. Cook until onion is translucent.
Add 2 tsp sage, ½ tsp nutmeg, ¼ tsp red pepper flakes, ¼ tsp salt, ¼ tsp pepper and a dash on cinnamon. Cook for about 1 minute.
Add low sodium chicken broth, pumpkin puree, and tomato paste.
Cook noodles in boiling water for 9 minutes. Then drain.
Mix noodles and sausage into the pumpkin sauce. Add 2 cups of spinach and mix until spinach wilts.
Serve pasta topped with parmesan cheese.
We served ours with sautéed Brussel sprouts and mushrooms.
I hope you enjoy this cozy Pumpkin Sage Sausage Pasta!
