Pumpkin Penne

I actually made this on Halloween along with a chicken with mushrooms and garlic dish. I hadn't really ever eaten pumpkin anything except bread, so it was fun to experiment. I was the one who liked this the best, of course, because I'm a pasta freak. I also tend to be the garbage disposal for new recipes--if no one else likes it, I feel it's my fault and therefore my responsibility to finish it all. I probably had this for six meals after Halloween. Throwing in sliced ham and warming it up for lunches was even better than just having this as a side dish, but you can do whatever you want. I used fresh sage from my pots, but dried would probably work as well. Recipe adapted from Rachel Ray's http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_77075,00.html.

Pumpkin Penne

1 pound penne pasta (I used Dreamfields but you can also used whole-wheat)
2 tbl olive oil
3 shallots, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups low-salt chicken stock
1 (15-oz) can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling!)
1/2 c. low-fat milk
Pinch nutmeg
2 pinches cinnamon
Salt and pepper to flavor
About 10-12 sage leaves (mine were small, so I used a lot!)
About 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
Sliced ham (optional, but really tasty!)

Follow instructions on box for cooking pasta, adding salt to the water. Heat oil in a large, non-stick skillet over medium-heat. Cook shallots and garlic for about 3 minutes or until tender. Stir in the chicken stock through salt and pepper. When pasta is done, drain and add to pan. Sliced up sage, add cheese, and mix all together. Feeds at least 8

Nutritional Value per serving: 254 Cal, 4.6g Fat, 1.5g Sat Fat, 125.6mg Sod, 46.8g Carb, 3g Sug, 6.9g Fiber, 10.4g Protein

~Enjoy!
Ingredients:

Gluten-free Pumpkin Bread

After a failed attempt with a recipe using pumpkin, I, naturally, had canned pumpkin left over. While the weather certainly isn’t indicating fall here in south Texas (but it’s almost October! Why, why, why?!), I was bored and decided to make pumpkin bread. I also decided to not try to make it “healthy.” I was really surprised how good the bread turned out—I ended up eating way too many slices when it was still warm. The next morning it was still good, too, surprisingly. Freeze leftovers and reheat when needed. Recipe adapted from Pamela’s Baking Mix website—http://www.pamelasproducts.com/recipe_frames.html. I used dark brown sugar (because I had it) and added some nutmeg, just to go along with the other spices.

Ingredients:
4 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

2 eggs

1 cup of canned pumpkin

1-1/3 cups Pamela's Baking & PancakeMix

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ginger

1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Beat together butter, sugar, egg, and pumpkin. Add remaining bread ingredients and mix together. Pour into a greased bread loaf pan. Bake in a preheated 350° oven for 50 to 60 minutes, or when toothpick inserted comes out almost clean.

Serves 12
Nutritional Value per serving: 135 Cal, 5.7g Fat, 2.8g Sat Fat, 168mg Sod, 18.7g Carb, 9.7g Sug, 1.3g Fib, 2.7g Protein

~Enjoy!