Five words. Fire Roasted Tomato Pumpkin Pasta. Yes, it’s vegan. I’ve been craving Trader Joe’s Autumnal Harvest Pasta Sauce, but unfortunately it’s out of season. So for lunch today I decided to make my own version of that sauce. It tastes similar to the sauce except I didn’t use any butternut squash in the mixture. Now that I think about it, I wish I had used some of it.
The best thing about this fire roasted tomato pumpkin pasta sauce is that it didn’t require me to use a blender or any butter! Yep! I didn’t use any of that stuff. I wasn’t in the mood to have a million dishes to wash today, therefore I used one pot. Don’t you just love one pot meals? Well, I do!
By the way, I used Trader Joe’s Organic Italian Artisan Gigli pasta. I think this pasta is one of their cutest pastas. As far as the taste, it just tastes like regular pasta. Nothing crazy. So if you’re buying it, you’re just buying it for the shape to be honest.
Lastly, I want to mention that this recipe will leave you with a full jar of sauce. The sauce filled up my 16 oz mason jar. I used about 3 cups of the sauce for this recipe. You can use as much sauce as you’d like for your pasta. The less sauce you use, the less creamy it will be. And the more sauce that you use, the more creamy that it will be.
How to make fire roasted tomato pumpkin pasta:
The first thing you need to do is go to Trader Joe’s and get a can of fire roasted tomatoes. Yeah, you can use regular diced or chopped tomatoes for this sauce. Although, it just won’t be as delicious if you do.
Next, you need some pumpkin puree. I used some canned pumpkin puree since pumpkins aren’t in season.
To make this pasta taste even better, in addition to the pumpkin puree and fire roasted tomatoes, you can use butternut squash puree! This combination is what is used in Trader Joe’s Autumnal Harvest pasta sauce. I didn’t add any to my recipe.
After adding all of your veggies, add in some nut milk to make it creamier! I used hemp seed milk. Hemp milk is neutral tasting and doesn’t add any nuttiness to this recipe. If you’d like a nutty taste in the pasta, try adding some hazelnut milk.
Rather than overwhelming the pasta sauce with lots of spices, I chose to keep it simple. I’m not sure why, but I haven’t been feeling overwhelming spice blends lately. I added herbs de provence, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and a little bit of smoked paprika. To counter act the acidity from the fire roasted tomatoes, I sweetened the pasta with a little monk fruit sugar. I didn’t want to add any overwhelming sweeteners like maple syrup.
Some protein & veggie ideas to add to this pasta:
Instead of adding in protein, today I decided to play it safe. Due to the fact I wasn’t in the mood for any meat or meat alternatives, I simply just added in some arugula. The cheese on top comes from VioLife. They have the absolute best vegan parmesan on the market.
If you’re someone that doesn’t enjoy just eating sauce and pasta, here are a few of my suggestions for this fire roasted tomato pumpkin pasta:
- Ground Beef, Ground Turkey, Ground Lamb, or Ground Pork
- Crumbled Seitan
- Manuka Honey Covered Walnuts
- Proscuitto
- Gardein’s Chik’n Strips
- Sautéed Zucchini and Eggplant
- Great Northern Beans
- Mushrooms
- Avocado
Want more recipes?
- Black Truffle Alfredo Pasta
- Creamy Goat Cheese Pasta
- Vegan Spinach & Artichoke Pasta
- Creamy Steak Vegetable Radiatore
Fire Roasted Tomato Pumpkin Pasta
Ingredients
For The Sauce
- 1 cup Fire Roasted Tomatoes
- 1 cup Pumpkin Puree
- 1 cup Hemp Milk
- 5 Garlic Cloves, minced
- 1/4 cup Mirepoix
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
- 2 tsp Herbs De Provence
- 1 tsp Monk Fruit Sugar
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
Pasta
- 3 cups Trader Joe’s Gigli Pasta
- 2 cups Arugula
- 1/4 cup VioLife Vegan Parmesan Cheese
Instructions
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Start by boiling the Gigli pasta according to instructions. Drain the pasta after it’s done cooking and rinse with cold water. Place the pasta into a bowl and set aside.
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In a large saucepan or dutch oven, add in the tbsp of avocado oil. Add in the chopped minced garlic and mirepoix over medium/low heat. Saute, do not allow the minced garlic to burn.
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Once the mirepoix and garlic are heated, add in the pumpkin puree and fire roasted tomatoes. Stir until all of the ingredients are combined and then add in the hemp milk. Reduce the heat to low. Continue to stir and then add in the spices.
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Measure out 3 cups of the sauce. Save the remaining sauce and allow to cool before placing into the refrigerator.
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Simmer on low heat for a few minutes (5-10 min) before adding in the pasta. Add in the pasta and arugula. Stir until the arugula begins to wilt. Remove from heat and top with vegan parmesan cheese.
Notes
- Feel free to add more sauce to the pasta if the sauce isn’t creamy enough. If the sauce is too creamy, add in a little water to thin it out.
- Calories are an estimate.
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4 comments
Looks good!
Thank you!!
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