Penne is drenched in a silky cashew pumpkin sauce and seasoned with savory sage and a dash of nutmeg to make this creamy vegan pumpkin pasta.
I’ve been sitting on this one forever. More than a year! Eek!
I first made this recipe way back late last summer on one of those chilly days when I was starting to get excited for fall. Totally thought I was ahead of the game. As luck would have it, and as often happens, I hated the photos. So I planned to do a reshoot and it just never happened. The next thing I knew it was spring and nobody cared about pumpkin anymore. (Well, I did, but I kept it to myself because I didn’t want to spoil all the enthusiasm for asparagus and strawberries).
So here we are, it’s chilly again, and hey, right on time this year I managed to squeeze in a shoot for some creamy vegan pumpkin pasta.
The original version of this dish was actually an Alfredo. What’s the difference between this and an Alfredo? Different pasta shape. That’s it! So make it with fettuccine, or any other pasta you like, and call it an Alfredo if you want.
Penne is actually quite a bit more photogenic than fettuccine, which I guess is why I use penne for so many of my creamy vegan pasta recipes, a fact that I just realized as I was editing the new photos. (Check it out: penne with vodka sauce, creamy tomato basil penne, and penne with creamy sun-dried tomato pesto). Creamy vegan pastas just tend to look like big blobs of food, so I need all the help I can get when snapping pics. Penne it is.
In any event, I didn’t mind remaking this one at all. It’s delicious and pasta with creamy, savory pumpkin sauce is exactly what’s needed this time of year if you ask me. Some sage and nutmeg add just the right earthy flavors to complement the pumpkin.
Oh, and another bonus: reshooting this now gave me the chance to put my new but still developing videography skills to work.
Creamy Vegan Pumpkin Pasta
Penne is drenched in a silky cashew pumpkin sauce and seasoned with savory sage and a dash of nutmeg to make this creamy vegan pumpkin pasta.
Ingredients
- 12 ounces dried penne pasta
- Dash olive oil
- 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water 4-8 hours, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup unflavored soy or almond milk, plus more as needed
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 garlic cloves
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
- Fresh parsley, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook it according to the package directions. Drain the pasta into a colander, return it to the pot, and toss with a dash of olive oil.
While the pasta cooks, place the pumpkin, cashews, milk, lemon juice, garlic, salt and nutmeg into the bowl of a food processor fitted with an S-blade. Blend until smooth. Add additional milk or water to thin if needed. Taste test and adjust the seasonings to your liking.
Pour the sauce over the pasta and toss to coat. Add some extra milk or water if to thin the sauce if needed. Stir in the sage.
Divide onto plates and sprinkle with parsley if desired. Serve.
Followed the recipe exactly and turned out amazing! I won’t chnage a thing, however my kids (although they loved it) want it more creamy next time. The fact that they want it next time is key! It’s hard finding recipes that don’t take long and are so flavorful.
I’m very excited to try quite a few more recipes off your site and I’ve already mentioned the site to several people.
Thank you so much!!
Yay!! I’m so glad it was a hit! If you want to make it more creamy I’d up the ratio of sauce to pasta and maybe add a few splashes more of milk!
I love everything pumpkin, so am anxious to try this one. With company coming for Thanksgiving week, can this sauce be made ahead and frozen?
Thank you,
I’ve frozen similar cashew-based sauces with good results, so I think so! If anything, you might need to add a few extra splashes of non-dairy milk after you thaw it out. I hope you enjoy it!!
Yummy. I served with Banzo pasta. A shallot would add a nice flavor. The leftover sauce was used to make overnight pumpkin oats.
Glad you enjoyed it, and great idea with the oats!!
This recipe is fantastic. I even eat the leftovers cold haha. The sage really brings out the flavors, I add a little extra each time I make this. Thank you for amazing recipes!
Thank you so much Kim!! I’m glad you’re enjoying it!
My daughter is allergic to nuts. Any acceptable replacements that would make it turn out as good? Thank you🌱
You could try vegan yogurt or canned coconut milk – you might just need to cut back on the amount of soy or almond milk. :)
Hi!
Great recipe! I loved it however, my husband did not like the garlic taste. We added 3 cloves precisely. Maybe that was a bit much.
I’m glad you enjoyed it! You can definitely decrease or omit the garlic if you like!
Is a serving one cup for 6 people?
A slightly heaping cup – the sauce adds a bit of volume. :)