I hope everyone had a great holiday weekend! Ours was busy but I did get some time to cook and bake, so I'll have some fun things to share in the next couple weeks. After last week's epic cake of chocolate amazingness, I felt like a filling main dish pasta recipe was in order.
Pumpkin "Mac 'n Cheese" with Swiss Chard and Pine Nuts
serves 4-6, adapted from oh she glows
1 lb penne or spiral pasta
1 Tbsp vegan butter
3/4 C unsweetened almond milk
1 Tbsp arrowroot powder or cornstarch
1/4 tsp garlic powder
6 Tbsp nutritional yeast
2 tsp Dijon mustard
1 C canned pumpkin puree
salt and pepper to taste
3-5 leaves swiss chard, chopped
1/2 C pine nuts
optional: red pepper flakes for some spice
Cook your pasta according to package directions. Drain and set aside.
Melt the vegan butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
In a separate bowl whisk the milk, arrowroot, and garlic powder and then add this into the pan.
Add the nutritional yeast, dijon, and salt & pepper. Continue to whisk until the sauce has thickened.
Add in the canned pumpkin and whisk until heated.
In a small pan toast the pine nuts on medium heat until slightly browned.
Combine the cooked pasta with the sauce, and add in the chopped swiss chard. Stir until combined and let sit for a few minutes to let the chard wilt a little.
Serve topped with the toasted pine nuts.
This was my first attempt at making a "cheese" pasta and I think it came together really well! There is a lot of healthy stuff hiding in that sauce so I felt good after eating it - not weighed down like usually happens after eating a really rich and creamy dish. Paired with a side salad, this was a delicious meal!
I think I may try some alfredo sauce next. Do you have a favorite creamy pasta recipe?
Thanks for stopping by!
Wow! That looks incredible. What a scrumptious meal for fall!
ReplyDeleteI agree - it's great comfort food for fall! :)
Deletei've made the oh she glows recipe a lot last fall/winter for dayv. he loved it! i love your additions of swiss chard and pine nuts ;)
ReplyDeleteNice! Did you add in anything when you made it? I bet it would be great with a lot of different things. :)
Deletewow this looks delicious! I will give it a try ! :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Lysa, hope you like it!
Deletefall is in the air already! love the pumpkin in there. hubbs is going to love this greens filled version!
ReplyDeleteYes - time for pumpkin! I much prefer it in dishes like this. :)
DeleteA girl after my own heart - love healthy mac n' cheeze recipes!
ReplyDeleteI have one brewing up for our family mac n cheese cook off competition that uses pumpkin which will definitely be shared on the blog :)
A mac n cheese competition?! Your family sounds so fun! Can't wait to see your recipe.
DeleteThat sounds like the perfect comfort food! I love how versatile pumpkin is- it makes for a great cheesy sauce base. And the addition of chard and pine nuts is genius. This sounds so good!
ReplyDeleteQuestion: Melt vegan butter in saucepan over medium heat. Everything else is in a separate bowl. What goes in the pan with melted butter?
ReplyDeleteOnce you mix the other ingredients in the separate bowl, then add into the pan with the melted butter. You'll put everything for the sauce into the pan.
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