Food on Friday: Much more than pumpkin pie

Turkey Day is coming, and many of us will be spending some serious hours in the kitchen this coming week. Our Thanksgiving is usually a little different due to the vegetarians in my family, as well as others who just don’t care for turkey. I’ve always tried to come up with some type of pasta dish to accomodate these crazy people, and this is one of my favorites (I skip the sausage for the vegetarians). It’s from Rachael Ray, who is ridiculously annoying and has some pretty fantastic recipes.

As I referred to here, I’ve recently begun experimenting with canned pumpkin in ways that go way beyond pumpkin pie. I’ve added it to oatmeal, to curry, and to pasta. I love how it brings a healthy richness to simple ingredients, and how easy it is to manipulate its flavor. It’s absolutely amazing in this dish, which has me stocking canned pumpkin year-round.

Recipe’s after the jump.

From rachaelray.com

Pasta with Pumpkin and Sausage

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
1 pound bulk sweet Italian sausage
4 cloves garlic, cracked and chopped
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
4-6 sprigs sage leaves (about 2 tablespoons), cut into chiffonade
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken stock
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, ground or freshly grated
Coarse salt and black pepper
1 pound penne rigate, cooked to al dente
Romano or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, for grating

Heat a large, deep nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1
tablespoon EVOO to the pan and brown the sausage in it. Transfer
sausage to a paper towel-lined plate. Drain fat from skillet and
return pan to the stove. Add the remaining tablespoon EVOO, followed
by the garlic and onion. Sauté 3-5 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, nutmeg, salt and
pepper, to taste. Simmer mixture 5-10 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 the pasta. Combine
sauce and pasta and toss over low heat for 1 minute. Garnish the pasta
with lots of shaved cheese and sage leaves.