Top | Main Dishes
Pumpkin Macaroni and Cheese
(recipe, Katie Hickey)
Introduction
This recipe is actually pretty good for you. I imagine it would be better with white pasta, but I used whole wheat shells, and it worked great.
Ingredients
- 1 lb. pasta, such as farfalle, small shells, or elbows
- One 15-ounce container part-skim ricotta
- One 15-ounce can pumpkin puree
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup Greek yogurt
- 2 tsp. salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ½ tsp. ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp. ground ginger
- ¾ cup pecans, roughly chopped
- ½ cup loosely packed fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
- 2 large garlic cloves, finely chopped
- ¾ cup grated Parmesan, divided
Steps
- Heat the oven to 375°F. Spray a 9x13-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Set aside. Bring a 4-quart pot of water to boil over high heat, and stir about 1 tablespoon of salt. Add the pasta, and turn the heat down to medium. Cook for a slightly shorter amount of time than specified by the package. (For instance, if the package specifies 10 to 12 minutes, cook for 9 to 10, or until just barely al dente.) Drain the pasta and toss lightly with olive oil.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the ricotta, pureed pumpkin, eggs, and yogurt. Whisk in the salt, pepper, nutmeg, and ginger.
- Stir in the pasta and coat completely with the pumpkin mixture. Stir in the pecans, chopped pecans, sage, and garlic. Stir in ½ cup Parmesan.
- Spread the mixture evenly in the prepared baking dish and sprinkle the remaining ¼ cup Parmesan over top. Bake uncovered for 35 minutes or until golden brown on top. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.