This Pumpkin Pasta with Mushroom & Kale is truly fall-dinner perfection! A healthy and whole pasta tossed with superfoods and coated in a creamy, delicious pumpkin sauce.
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Pumpkin in a savory pasta recipe?
Yeah that was me as well when I first came across a pumpkin pasta recipe on Tasty. Quite a few people in the comments on there also had similar initial reactions, but ended up with something decent, so I decided to give it a shot.
This is probably somewhere close to the top on the I-spent-a-while-researching-and-coming-up-with-this-recipe list. I needed something low in fat and high in carbs since it was going to be my post-workout meal. And because that was’t being picky enough already, I also needed the dish to contribute to my daily vegetable intake so I wouldn’t have to end up stuffing myself with a bowl of veggies for dinner.
I thought finding the perfect recipe would be easy – don’t ask why – but I ended up with some combination of about 5 different ones to get to this. Why? Because
1: I had more components than just plain pasta which needed to be covered by the sauce.
2: There was so much discrepancy between the amount of pumpkin and liquids in the sauce even for the same amount of pasta!
3: Lets just say i need my food perfectly seasoned.
A healthy Vegan Pumpkin Pasta
This vegan pumpkin pasta loaded with mushroom and kale is truly a perfect warm healthy bowl of comfort to cozy up to, with all the fall. I don’t think it can get any better!What makes it so perfect?
- Chickpea flour pasta from Banza (or even whole grain) gives fiber instead of empty carbs.
- So so many benefits of the kale and mushrooms
- A creamy pumpkin pasta sauce with no cream, no milk, no butter, no dairy, or even non-dairy subs, just pumpkin puree
- Nutritional Yeast in that pasta sauce adds a ton of nutritional value (duh) and also a nice cheesy flavor
- A perfect combination of spices flavoring up that sauce
- Vegan, dairy-free AND gluten-free pasta recipe with pumpkin!
I usually like to bake my pumpkin kale pasta after cooking it to get that extra crunch on the top. Its a bit of an extra effort, the bake really adds a whole lot to this vegan pasta!
And then to make it extra special, have it with some extra nutritional yeast (FYI, I absolutely love nooch!), so I planned on doing that with this dish too; I’m so so glad I had that heaping spoonful to taste it first, because it was just so good! At that point I was actually afraid all the extras would ruin it.
More Creamy Pasta Recipes?
Pumpkin Pasta with Mushroom & Kale
Ingredients
- 3 oz Whole Grain or Chickpea Pasta, 85g
- 1 cup Kale, Shredded/Chopped, 67g
- ½ tsp Olive Oil
- ¼ cup Onion, Chopped, 30g
- 1 tsp Garlic, Minced
- 2 cups Mushrooms, Sliced, 140g
Sauce:
- ½ cup Pumpkin Puree, Canned, 122g
- ¼ cup Vegetable Broth
- 2 Tbsp Pasta Water
- 1½ Tbsp Nutritional Yeast, 7.5g
- ⅓ tsp Dried Sage
- ¼ tsp Dried Rosemary
- ¼ tsp Cumin
- ⅛ tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
- ⅛ tsp Salt
- ⅛ tsp Black Pepper
Instructions
- Bring 4 cups water to a boil in pot, add pasta, and cook for about 7-10 minutes (according to package instructions), adding kale during the last 30 seconds. Reserve 2 Tbsp water, drain, return to pan, and cover to keep warm.
- Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat and fry the onions and garlic for about 2 minutes until translucent. Set aside half the mixture.
- Add mushrooms to skillet and cook until they begin to brown, about 4 minutes.
- Blend reserved onion-garlic mix and sauce ingredients in a food processor or blender, until creamy and smooth, about 15 sec.
- Add sauce, pasta and kale to skillet with mushrooms, toss to combine, and serve immediately!
- Optional: Bake in a 350°F oven for 15 minutes until top gets crispy.
Notes
- Use shaped pasta for this recipe so it can hold the sauce.
- Add a splash of broth or reserved pasta water if the sauce is too thick.
- In an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- Servings: 4 cups | Serving size: 2 cups
- Calories: 230kcal
- Fat: 3.3g | Saturated fat: 0.5g
- Carbohydrates: 43.5g | Fiber: 8.5g | Sugar: 6g
- Protein: 12.8g
Hey! I'm Haylee
Google Software Engineer
I use my passion for baking (and eating) to create healthy, high-protein, good-for-you and diet-friendly desserts and sweet treats that are actually delicious.
Come join me in Hayl's Kitchen and let's eat high protein, sweet and guilt free!