This Pasta with Pumpkin Sauce turns your favorite fall ingredient into a creamy, savory, pumpkin-forward sauce with notes of Parmesan, nutmeg, and sage, all in just one pot on the stove.
Creamy, velvety, and lightly spiced with pumpkin puree and autumn flavors, this quick and easy weeknight dinner is both comforting and flavorful. (P.S. if you’re loving this flavor profile, I think you’ll also love this Coconut Sage Sauce for Butternut Squash Ravioli!).
The perfect cozy Fall vegetarian dinner, this pumpkin sauce pasta brings seasonal warmth to your table in no time, yielding enough to feed the whole family.
Plus, as a time-strapped mom who refuses to settle for boring food, this Fall pasta dish ticks all the right boxes: unique and boldly flavored, requires only one pot (easy to cook and clean up!), and comes together in under 30 minutes.
By the way, if you’re a sucker for savory pumpkin dishes with cheese, check out this Baked Pumpkin Mac and Cheese next!
Pasta With Pumpkin Sauce Ingredient Highlights
Use short pasta here, like Penne, Cavatappi, Fusilli, Rotini, Farfalle, Gemelli, Rigatoni, or Ziti.
You can buy vegetable broth or make your own from veggie scraps! Chicken broth also works here. Any percentage dairy or any unsweetened, unflavored non-dairy milk works in this recipe.
You can use pre-grated Parm or freshly grate it from a block.
Stovetop Pumpkin Pasta Tips and Tricks
How to Make Pumpkin Puree Pasta in One Pot
Grab your pasta and add it to a large pot with the vegetable broth, pumpkin puree, olive oil, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Crank up the heat, cover, and bring it to a boil.
The pasta will soak up all that incredible flavor, like yummy little sponges! And no draining required, how cool is that? This easy-breezy technique will make your life a whole lot simpler while giving your taste buds a reason to do the happy dance.
The secret to cooking pasta in just one pot, is stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon so the pasta noodles don’t stick to each other or to the bottom of the pot.
After 13 minutes, spear one noodle on your fork and taste it for doneness. You can give it a few more minutes if need be. When it’s perfect, remove from heat and add the butter, sage and Parmesan.
Keep stirring away, allowing the residual heat from the one-pot pasta gently melt the butter. Make sure the pasta is evenly coated in the creamy pumpkin pasta sauce.
All that’s left to do is thin out the sauce to get the perfect consistency. Still stirring gently, slowly add the milk until you’re happy with the thickness of the savory pumpkin sauce. You may not need all the milk!
How to Serve Pumpkin Sauce Pasta
This pasta with pumpkin sauce is delicious enough on its own, but if you want to jazz it up, here are my favorite proteins to serve it up with:
How I Store and Reheat Pasta with Pumpkin Sauce
Store leftover creamy one-pot pumpkin pasta in an airtight container and enjoy within 5-7 days.
To reheat, grab a microwave-safe bowl and give your pasta a little milk splash, cover it up, and zap it on high for about 2 minutes.
Give it a good stir, and if it’s not heated through, continue to microwave in 30-second intervals, stirring in between, until it’s ready to enjoy!
Otherwise, add it to a pot and let it gently heat over low heat for around 20 minutes. Add extra milk and salt and pepper as needed.
One-Pot Pasta with Pumpkin Sauce
SAVE RECIPE TO COLLECTION PIN PRINT RATEEquipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces short pasta (like penne, ziti, rigatoni, or farfalle)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 4 cups vegetable broth (or chicken broth)
- 1 (15-oz) can pumpkin puree
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- ½ ounce fresh sage
- ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup milk of choice
Instructions
- Add the pasta, vegetable broth, pumpkin puree, olive oil, salt, pepper, and nutmeg to a large pot over high heat and stir. Cover and bring to a rolling boil, then turn heat down to medium to simmer.16 ounces short pasta, 2 tablespoons olive oil, 4 cups vegetable broth, 1 (15-oz) can pumpkin puree, ¼ teaspoon salt, ⅛ teaspoon black pepper, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- Cover and simmer over medium for 13-15 minutes, stirring every 3-5 minutes with a wooden spoon, until pasta is al dente. As you stir, scrape the bottom of the pot to ensure the pasta doesn't stick.
- Meanwhile, finely chop the sage. Remove the pasta from heat and add the butter, sage, and Parmesan cheese. Stir to coat, allowing the residual heat to melt the butter.2 tablespoons unsalted butter, ½ ounce fresh sage, ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- Slowly add the milk to thin out the sauce, about 1 tablespoon at a time until you achieve your desired consistency. You may not need all ½ cup.½ cup milk of choice
- Serve hot with a little extra grated Parmesan and sage for garnish. Enjoy!
Pro Tips
- Add the milk slowly to gauge the consistency of the sauce.
- This recipe can be used for any short pasta, including, but not limited to Penne (as pictured), Cavatappi, Fusilli, Rotini, Farfalle, Rigatoni, and Gemelli.
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2 thoughts on “One-Pot Pasta with Pumpkin Sauce”
LOVED this recipe, it came out soo flavorful and creamy! I added kielbasa for some extra meat, but next time I make this will probably make it without because it was that good! Awesome recipe, so simple and delicious!
I’m so glad you loved it, Elise!! It truly is such a great base recipe to add whatever you want and make it your own!