Cheesy Baked Pumpkin Pasta With Kale Recipe • 5★

Updated October 1, 2018

Linda Xiao for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini.

Arguably one of the coziest autumnal dishes you can make in under an hour, this cheesy pumpkin pasta doesn’t rely on a roux. Instead, the sauce is made simply by blending canned pumpkin, cream and vegetable stock. And because the pasta bakes in a flash — just 10 to 15 minutes at 500 degrees — the most time-consuming part of the entire recipe is grating all that cheese.

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Butter, for greasing the pan

1 pound medium pasta shells or tubes, like conchiglie rigate or penne

1 bunch kale (about 1 pound), ribs removed, chopped into bite-size pieces

½ teaspoon red-pepper flakes

1 heaping tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary, plus more for garnish

1 heaping tablespoon chopped fresh thyme, plus more for garnish

About 1 heaping cup coarsely grated Parmesan

About 1 heaping cup coarsely grated Gruyère

About 1 heaping cup coarsely grated Fontina or mozzarella

1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin purée

2 garlic cloves, peeled

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for pasta water

½ teaspoon black pepper

½ cup heavy cream

¼ cup vegetable broth

½ cup whole-milk ricotta

Step 1Heat oven to 500 degrees and butter a shallow 2-quart/9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Heat oven to 500 degrees and butter a shallow 2-quart/9-by-13-inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Step 2Cook the pasta in the boiling water for 4 minutes, adding the kale for the last minute. Drain the pasta and kale, rinse under cold water, then transfer to a large bowl along with the red-pepper flakes and the chopped herbs.

Cook the pasta in the boiling water for 4 minutes, adding the kale for the last minute. Drain the pasta and kale, rinse under cold water, then transfer to a large bowl along with the red-pepper flakes and the chopped herbs.

Step 3In a blender, add the pumpkin, garlic, salt, pepper, cream and vegetable broth. Blend until smooth. (If you don’t want to use a blender, add the pumpkin, salt and pepper to a large bowl and use a spoon to break it up into a smooth mixture. Slowly whisk in the cream and vegetable broth until mixture is smooth, then grate in the garlic.) Add the sauce to the bowl with the pasta. Add in most of the grated cheese, reserving about ½ cup, and stir to coat.

In a blender, add the pumpkin, garlic, salt, pepper, cream and vegetable broth. Blend until smooth. (If you don’t want to use a blender, add the pumpkin, salt and pepper to a large bowl and use a spoon to break it up into a smooth mixture. Slowly whisk in the cream and vegetable broth until mixture is smooth, then grate in the garlic.) Add the sauce to the bowl with the pasta. Add in most of the grated cheese, reserving about ½ cup, and stir to coat.

Step 4Transfer the pasta into the baking dish, then dollop the ricotta over top and sprinkle remaining grated cheese. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until brown and bubbly. If you want the pasta really browned, broil it for 3 to 5 minutes, watching carefully. Allow the dish to cool for 5 to 10 minutes, and garnish with additional chopped herbs before serving.

Transfer the pasta into the baking dish, then dollop the ricotta over top and sprinkle remaining grated cheese. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until brown and bubbly. If you want the pasta really browned, broil it for 3 to 5 minutes, watching carefully. Allow the dish to cool for 5 to 10 minutes, and garnish with additional chopped herbs before serving.

I know it's apostasy, but I made this according to the recipe. It was very good.

This was so so tasty! I made a few changes. I sauteed the kale with garlic and red pepper flakes before adding it to the pasta. Strongly recommend this. I skipped the ricotta entirely, used only 1/2 cup Parmesan, and went scant on all the other cheeses. It was still more than creamy and cheesy enough. Used 1 cup of veggie broth to thin out the sauce consistency. Only had fresh rosemary (no thyme) but think this really made the dish. I sprinkled some extra on top pre-bake. It smelled heavenly!

I added silken tofu instead of cream and less cheese - it seemed not to make much of a difference and the result was not too heavy. The herbs are a definite must as canned pumpkin really has little taste. It’s a lovely alternative to baked ziti!

@Donna: While I agree in principle that people should initially try recipes as written, there is no contract requiring people not to modify the posted recipe, especially because many people have food allergies, suffer medical conditions, may dislike an ingredient, do not have the required batterie de cuisine to make the recipe, or be unable to buy an ingredient. Some people have also discovered mistakes in posted recipes, which NYT (to their credit) promptly corrects.

I added diced country ham (apostasy, I know!), and had frozen hot peppers and garlic scapes in oil from last summer, all of which I sauteed with the herbs before adding to (much more) butternut squash and (much less) pasta and cheese (I had fontina, ricotta [low-fat, more apostasy, but homemade], and parmigiano). A lot more liquid and a lower oven temp insured that the pasta actually cooked, with a nice bit of browning/caramelization. I used heavy cream but will try drained yogurt next time.

Just to make my life more difficult, I roasted a butternut squash instead of opening a can of pumpkin. I put shallots and garlic in the squash, S&P, EVOO, into 425 oven. I had a chicken breast I needed to use up, so I sautéed that (sliced) in a skillet with S&P, chili flakes, garlic. I pureed the squash, shallots, garlic and chicken stock that needed to be used. I also had a tub of burrata past its date so used that instead of mozz. Lots of parm and gruyere. It was good, but needed more salt!

Source: https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1019598-cheesy-baked-pumpkin-pasta-with-kale