Description
A comforting vegetarian pasta bake featuring a creamy pumpkin-tomato sauce, sautéed mushrooms and spinach, topped with a blend of fontina and Parmesan cheeses and a buttery walnut-sage topping.
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 lb dry pasta (mezzi rigatoni, shells, ziti, fusilli, or farfalle)
- 2 Tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts
- 1 Tbsp plus 2 tsp finely chopped fresh sage leaves, divided
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 8 oz cremini (baby bella) mushrooms, sliced
- 1 yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 4 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- 3 to 4 handfuls fresh baby spinach
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 3 cups vegetable broth
- 1 (15-oz) can pumpkin purée
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 cups grated fontina cheese, divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C).
- Cook pasta in salted boiling water until al dente. Drain and set aside.
- In a large sauté pan, heat olive oil and 1 Tbsp butter over medium heat.
- Add mushrooms and cook until softened.
- Add chopped onion and cook until translucent.
- Stir in tomato paste, garlic, and crushed red pepper flakes; cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add vegetable broth, pumpkin purée, dried oregano, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.
- Stir and simmer for 5-7 minutes until sauce thickens slightly.
- Add spinach and cook until wilted.
- Combine cooked pasta with pumpkin-tomato sauce and half of the fontina and Parmesan cheeses.
- Transfer mixture to a large baking dish.
- In a small pan, melt remaining butter and sauté walnuts with 2 tsp chopped sage until fragrant.
- Sprinkle the walnut-sage topping over the pasta bake and top with remaining fontina cheese.
- Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes until cheese is melted and golden on top.
- Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
- This pasta bake is perfect for autumn and sneaks in vegetables like pumpkin and spinach.
- For a nuttier flavor, toast the walnuts before adding.
- You can substitute fontina with mozzarella if preferred.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian-inspired
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 serving
- Calories: 450
- Sugar: 6g
- Sodium: 700mg
- Fat: 18g
- Saturated Fat: 7g
- Unsaturated Fat: 11g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 55g
- Fiber: 6g
- Protein: 18g
- Cholesterol: 35mg