Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

Creamy pumpkin pasta sauce is the stuff that pasta dreams are made of. This fast and easy sauce is full of pumpkin, sage, nutmeg, garlic, onion, a touch of cream, and some crumbled sweet Italian sausage.

It clings to your pasta and coats every bite with the most delicious sweet and savory flavors. Of course, it’s perfect for a fall meal, but as long as you have an extra can of pureed pumpkin, you can make this luscious pumpkin pasta sauce anytime.  

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Jump to:

• Why This Recipe Works
• Recipe Ingredients
• Substitutions and Variations
• Best Pasta Shapes For Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
• Step By Step Instructions
• Expert Tips
• Recipe FAQs
• Related Pasta Recipes
• Recipe

Why This Recipe Works

This pumpkin pasta sauce is a nice change from tomato sauce — as much as I really do love my 3-ingredient homemade pasta sauce. It’s rich, creamy, and an unexpected way to take a simple pasta dinner to a new level.

Even though it looks and tastes extra-special, this recipe comes together in about 30 minutes. 

And it’s good for you because pumpkin is packed with antioxidants from a boatload of beta-carotene. It’s one of those superfoods worth eating all year because the nutrients in pumpkin support healthy eyesight, reduce your risk of cancer, and promote healthy blood pressure.

Recipe Ingredients

Here are the key ingredients I use to make my pumpkin pasta sauce. Substitutions and some variations are listed in the section below.

See my recipe card for the complete list of ingredients with measurements.

Substitutions and Variations

A good quality blue cheese like Stilton or Gorgonzola Dolce is AMAZING in this sauce.

Instead of sausage, try adding shredded rotisserie chicken or ground beef, or leave the meat out and keep it vegetarian. You can also serve the meatless sauce with cheese or meat ravioli.

If you don’t have hazelnuts, chopped walnuts are a great substitution.

You can also swap butternut squash for the pumpkin. If you find pureed squash in a can, use that. Otherwise, an easy option is frozen butternut squash cubes. Steam them and puree them in a food processor or blender.

Best Pasta Shapes For Pumpkin Pasta Sauce

You can use any pasta you have on hand for this recipe, but personally, I like penne or rigatoni because the sauce collects in the tubes. Other good pasta shapes that capture lots of this yummy sauce include:

• Campanelle
• Farfalle (bowtie)
• Orecchiette
• Shells
• Fusilli
• Pappardelle

Step By Step Instructions

First, cook your pasta in salted water until it's al dente. Check the package directions because cooking times depend on your pasta shape. Drain the pasta and set it aside. While the pasta is cooking, saute your onion and garlic, and then add the sausage, breaking it up well.

Second, add tomato sauce and spices. Stir everything together for about 30 seconds, just until it's fragrant.

Third, add the pumpkin and chicken stock and bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat and add the cream and then the cheese.

Fourth, fold in the warm pasta and stir well so everything is coated with the sauce. Add the chopped nuts and garnish with extra fresh sage.

Expert Tips

• Salt your pasta water before adding the pasta. It always makes pasta taste better. 
• Reserve about ½ cup of pasta water in case you need to thin out the sauce. NOTE: you can also add extra chicken stock instead of pasta water.
• Cook your pasta until it’s just al dente. It will soften up a little more when you add it to the sauce.
• The sauce will tighten up as it cools, so don’t worry if the pasta seems like it has too much sauce. 
• When you add the cream to the sauce, turn the heat to low so the cream doesn’t curdle. 
• If you want to use half and half instead of heavy cream, temper it first by slowly adding about ¼ cup of the hot sauce to the half and half. Then, add the mixture to the pan. This reduces the chance of curdling.

Recipe FAQs

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