Fusilli with Pumpkin and Sausage
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.
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!
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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. Let’s talk about this fusilli with pumpkin and sausage recipe.
It uses fresh pumpkin, sausages without sugar or nitrites, and quality canned tomatoes. 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 my list of what should not be in anyone’s kitchen here.
One of my biggest soap box rants was about tomatoes, and tomato sauce. Oh yes, I really had my biggest vent online when I saw a horrible “recipe” for pasta 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.
The most critical ingredient in tomato sauce is definitely the tomatoes. If you use less than stellar tomatoes, you will end up with a less than stellar sauce, and no one likes that.
Use Quality Canned Tomatoes
Besides being the tomatoes that my ancestors and family have always used, the nutrition and quality is excellent, not just the flavor.
“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.” -Greatest Tomatoes from Italy.
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.
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 quality canned tomatoes in one post, so stay tuned for 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.
A few quality brands that I love are the following:
Fontanella
La Valle
Mutti
Ciao
Rega
*Note: Cento says “certified” on their labels, but certified what, and by whom? I avoid this brand due to legal troubles and questionable labeling on their products.
CHECK OUT MY LIST 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 site. 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!
Check out my post from when I 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 serves 5
FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE BELOW
Ingredients
- extra-virgin olive oil
- garlic cloves
- fresh pumpkin
- Italian sausages (mild or spicy)
- whole tomatoes
- Kosher or sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- parsley, as a garnish if desired
- Parmigiano Reggiano or Pecorino cheese DOP
- Fusilli pasta or any other short shape you desire
Make the Pasta 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 the Fusilli with Pumpkin and Sausage
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!
Fusilli with Pumpkin and Sausage
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 ½ cups pumpkin cubed- ¼" just a bit bigger than ½ cm
- 3 Italian sausages mild or spicy
- 8 oz whole tomatoes chopped or tomato puree (good quality from Europe)
- 5 oz water
- ⅛ tsp sea salt
- ⅛ tsp black pepper freshly ground
- 16 oz fusilli or any short shape you desire (good quality brand)
- 2 tsp chopped parsley as a garnish if desired
- 2 tsp Parmigiano Reggiano cheese shaved or Pecorino cheese (if desired)
Instructions
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 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.
- 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.
Notes
- Always use fresh, quality ingredients for the best results.
Nutrition
Want more canned tomato recipes? Just click here -> List of Delicious Canned Tomato Recipes.
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Quality makes a huge difference with staples like tinned tomatoes, so I agree with you that using better ones comes through in the final dish. Love the look of this recipe!
Thanks, Kavita!
Ha this is funny, I was literally just writing about making sausage pasta! I love the idea of adding pumpkin – I’ll def be trying that next time!
That’s too funny! It’s a tasty way to add more nutrition, Chloe!