Fusilli with Pumpkin and Sausage and the Greatest Tomatoes From Europe

Fusilli with pumpkin and sausage is a quick and easy recipe that is perfect for cooler weather weeknights! Just be sure to use the best quality ingredients, including the greatest tomatoes from Europe!

For 8 years now, I’ve been saying the same thing, “Use the best quality ingredients you can find.” I’ll be saying the same thing for the next 8 years, and the next 16 years!

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This is not a sponsored post. I bought the tomatoes myself, and have been promoting good quality Italian tomatoes since I started my site (2011).

That won’t change on my end, but have you been making any changes in your kitchen? I’m constantly on the hunt for the best ingredients I can use.

Years ago I wrote a post about a few ingredients that I feel (yes, it’s my opinion) no one should have in their kitchen. You’ll find it here.

One of my biggest soap box rants was about tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Oh yes, I really had my biggest diatribe here when I saw a “recipe” for tomato sauce and almost had a heart attack. I followed that post with my Italian family’s recipe for a super quick and easy tomato sauce that’s ready before the pasta is.

Today, I’d like to introduce you to a campaign I’m joining to tell the world about–

The Greatest Tomatoes from Europe

The art of perfection. Preserved for your table.

This last sentence is gold. This exemplifies what the Greatest Tomatoes from Europe is about: the best quality tomatoes for YOU to use in your kitchen, for YOUR family and friends. I don’t use anything but canned and jar tomatoes from Europe. Hopefully, over the course of the campaign, you’ll understand why I have chosen European tomatoes.

Besides being the tomatoes that my ancestors and family have always used, the nutrition and quality is excellent, not just the flavor. From the Greatest Tomatoes from Europe website–

     “Tomatoes are naturally low in sugars and fats but rich in vitamin A, vitamin C, potassium, minerals, fibres and antioxidants like lycopene, making them a concentrated burst of beneficial substances.”

However, certain tomatoes have more nutrients than others depending on the soil where they are grown. Did you know that?

ANICAV (as best as I can translate into English, the National Association of Industrial Preservation of Vegetable Products”) came into being on August 18th, 1945 to protect the interests and well being of companies that were producing vegetable products during wartime. 

     “ANICAV was one of the first associations to draw up a handbook of good hygiene practices for the production of canned tomatoes, approved by the Italian Ministry of Health, to help tomato-processing companies in preparing their HACCP manuals.”

Many times, canned tomatoes are better quality than using fresh when they are out of season. I can’t possibly outline all the information about European tomatoes in one post, so stay tuned for much more. I hope you’ll be interested in the history and background of these top notch tomatoes as well as discovering how they are grown, harvested and processed. The cans will always say, “pomodori pelati Italiani” which simply means “Italian peeled tomatoes”.

A few of the brands chosen to be in the Greatest Tomatoes From Europe Campaign are:

Fontanella
La Valle
Mutti
Ciao
La Doria (whole peeled tomatoes 3Kg branded Carmelina e’ San Marzano)

LOTS OF CANNED TOMATO RECIPES TO CURE THE “WHAT’S FOR DINNER? – DILEMMA”

In the meantime, enjoy this recipe which I slightly adapted from The Greatest Tomatoes from Europe’s list of wonderful recipes. This fusilli with pumpkin and sausage dish is one you can make in just over half an hour and the whole family will love it–I did!

EDIT: Since writing this, I took a press trip to Italy and was able to visit the Ciao Tomato Factory
in Southern Italy. 

Fusilli with Pumpkin and Sausage

recipe slightly adapted from The Greatest Tomatoes from Europe

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 or 3 garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 cups (200 g) pumpkin, cubed (1/4″ just a bit bigger than 1/2 cm)
• 2 to 3 Italian sausages (mild or spicy)
• 8 oz whole tomatoes (good quality from Europe), chopped or puréed
• 4 to 6 oz water
• Kosher or sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• chopped parsley as a garnish if desired
• shaved Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino cheese, if desired
• 1 lb fusilli (good quality brand) or any other short shape you desire

Make the sauce

Add the peeled and smashed garlic (hit it with the flat side of a knife) to a frying pan with the extra virgin olive oil, then add the diced pumpkin and skinned sausages.

Use a wooden spoon to chop the sausage into small pieces as it cooks.

Let them brown for about 5 minutes and then add salt, black pepper, and the chopped or puréed tomatoes, and the water, and simmer for about 20 minutes.

Taste, and adjust the seasonings if needed.

Cook the fusilli

Cook the pasta in large pot with a plentiful amount of salted water. You can start the pasta cooking when the sauce has about 10 minutes left to save time.

Combine and serve.

When the pasta is al dente (still a little hard when you bit into it) drain with a slotted spoon and add directly to the frying pan with the sauce.

Toss the pasta with the sauce and serve immediately. You can sprinkle some chopped parsley and Parmigiano or Pecorino cheese, if you desire.

Fusilli with pumpkin and sausage is delicious and nutritious!

Buon appetito!

Continue to Content

Fusilli with Pumpkin and Sausage

Yield: 5 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

A quick and easy pasta dish with pumpkin, sausage and tomatoes that is as delicious as it is nutritious.

Print

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 or 3 garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 cups (200 g) pumpkin, cubed (1/4" just a big bigger than 1/2 cm)
• 2 to 3 Italian sausages (mild or spicy)
• 8 oz whole or chopped tomatoes or tomato puree (good quality from Europe)
• 4 to 6 oz water
• Kosher or sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• chopped parsley as a garnish if desired
• shaved Parmigiano or Pecorino cheese, if desired
• 1 lb fusilli (good quality brand) or any short shape you desire

Instructions

Make the sauce

1. Add the peeled and smashed garlic (hit it with the flat side of a knife) to a frying pan with the extra virgin olive oil, then add the diced pumpkin and skinned sausages.
2. Use a wooden spoon to chop the sausage into small pieces as it cooks.
3. Let them brown for about 5 minutes and then add salt, black pepper, and the chopped tomatoes, and the water, and simmer for about 20 minutes.
4. Taste, and adjust the seasonings if needed.

Cook the fusilli

1. Cook the pasta in large pot with a plentiful amount of salted water. You can start the pasta cooking when the sauce has about 10 minutes left to save time.

Combine and serve.

1. When the pasta is al dente (still a little hard when you bit into it) drain with a slotted spoon and add directly to the frying pan with the sauce.
2. Toss the pasta with the sauce and serve immediately. You can sprinkle some chopped parsley and Parmigiano or Pecorino cheese, if you desire.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 5 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving:Calories: 340Total Fat: 25gSaturated Fat: 9gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 16gCholesterol: 49mgSodium: 916mgCarbohydrates: 12gFiber: 2gSugar: 5gProtein: 17g

Nutrition information is estimated.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a review by clicking on the 5 stars above, in the purple header (a form will appear) or tag me on Instagram! 😍

Want more canned tomato recipes? Just click here -> List of Delicious Canned Tomato Recipes.

Read more about The Greatest Tomatoes from Europe!

Christina’s Cucina is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associate Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.