nothing says the start of October, like a hot plate of Pumpkin nooooodles
Happy Friday! Are you SO happy it's finally Fall, even though the weather STILL says otherwise? Is anyone else patiently waiting for weather and flannel season? I know I am!
I need to take a moment to reach out and pray for those that were affected by the extremely heart breaking shooting in Las Vegas earlier this week. I find it hard to wrap my head around that fact that there are still people in this world that have so much hate in their heart, and they feel the best way to release it is through harming others. Such a devastating thing to happen, and I can only pray that brighter days are to come. My heart is with you, Las Vegas! <3
Any weekend plans? I'm heading to Buffalo early tomorrow morning to celebrate the baby shower of one of my best friends, and it will be a weekend of catching up and hopefully more fall-like weather being up so North! It's hard to get into the feeling of pumpkins and apple pies when it was nearly 80 degrees out yesterday. I'm confused. My wardrobe is confused. I'm just hoping I do not catch a cold in this.
Anyhow, my newest Fall recipe was developed with a bit of inspiration from Hot For Food. Lauren Toyota introduced this *magical* trick to a creamy pasta sauce WITHOUT using cashews. Can you believe that zucchini can make a pureed sauce?! When she shared her Vegan Carbonara, I had to try it out and it was SO good. So, why not try making an Alfredo- no, even better- PUMPKIN Alfredo, out this new secret sauce base? BAM. Here it is! My super tasty Vegan Alfredo.
And don't panic if you aren't the hugest pumpkin lover. It doesn't taste like you're eating pumpkin puree out of the can. There are SO many flavors that come together and balance it out so perfectly. All of the tastes of Fall in one swirl of a fork :) Enjoy, and have a lovely weekend! xx Sam.
I N G R E D I E N T S:
- 2 zucchinis, peeled and diced
- 5-6 cloves of garlic, halved
- 3/4 cup of pumpkin puree
- 3 Tbs of nutritional yeast flakes
- 2 Tbs of lemon juice
- 1/3 cup of almond milk
- 1/2 tsp of each salt & pepper (plus more to taste!)
- 1 Tbs of olive oil - plus a splash for sautéing
- Noodles of choice! Sauce makes enough for one 16oz box of Linguine noodles
PREP: Begin by peeling your zucchini well, and dicing your garlic into halves. Prep all of your spices and liquids so we can make this in a jiffy! Also, bring a pot of salted water to a boil, and get your pasta started.
SAUCE!: In a cast iron pan or large pan over medium heat, add a small splash of olive oil. Once hot, toss in your zucchini and garlic cloves, plus a small pinch of salt. Saute for about 8 minutes, until your zucchini is softened and about cooked through. Toss the garlic and zucchini in a high speed blender with pumpkin, nutritional yeast flakes, lemon, almond milk, salt & pepper, and olive oil. Blend up until smooooth and creamy!
PUMPKIN NOODLES: Because it makes a lot of sauce and a lot of pasta, I did mine in 2 batches! Add half of the pasta into your still hot pan and turn heat to medium low. Pour on half of the sauce and toss to coat the noodles as it heats. After a few minutes, your pasta will be coated evenly and hot! Serve immediately, with additional salt & pepper to taste :)