I’m still on my soft food journey from dental surgery but I did not want to miss out on flavor, protein and nutrition. This pumpkin and squash protein pasta is made all in one pot for an easy weeknight dinner that’ll fill your soul with comfort like a warm hug.

First, let’s talk process so you know what to expect as you’re making your one pot pasta recipe. It’s helpful to also pre cut and pre measure all of your ingredients so that they’re ready when you begin cooking. This is called Mise en place, which is just French for ‘putting in place’ or ‘gathering’. I like to use these metal bowls from Amazon

And these white ramekins to help organize my ingredients. All the products mentioned in this blog post recipe are from Amazon.

I used a mixture of chicken bone broth and vegetable broth but you can use either one. I personally prefer unsalted. Even if I wasn’t watching my blood pressure, I would still choose unsalted broth so that I can add my own salt to taste and use a higher quality salt.

I just use our favorite canned pumpkin purée for this one pot pasta recipe. Make sure it’s just the pumpkin purée and NOT the pumpkin pie mix, they have similar packaging so make sure it’s just the 100% pure pumpkin. I love these pink silicone spatulas to get every remaining bit out of my can and measuring cup.

You can season this one pot pasta however you want, but I love starting with this mushroom powder by Ellie’s Best because it gives such a warm deep umami flavor with extra nutrients.

You can obviously make this one pot pasta on your traditional stove. For my current living situation of having a shared stove, dinner time can get chaotic. I invested in this rather inexpensive induction burner and I love it so much! It uses magnetic energy to heat your pot so the burner only gets hot from residual heat from the pot. It makes it much more safe in the small space. 10/10!

I used protein pasta for my one pot pasta to help with my protein intake. I love Barilla’s line of protein pasta. It doesn’t taste different than their regular pasta, imho. I also enjoy Goodles brand protein pasta too.

I use this Dutch oven because, well, she’s beautiful and I was gifted her for Christmas from my bestie! But also, she works perfectly on the induction burner. Not all pots and pans will work but cast iron will and that’s the best cookware for flavor anyways.

This part is optional but I find it add a lot of subtle warmth and extra flavor. I used to use sriracha for this recipe but I switched to Hot Ones’ Garlic Fresno for multiple reasons. A) I think it tastes better, B) it has a third of the amount of sodium and C) sriracha’s look and flavor changed once they cut ties with their pepper supplier. I don’t know if you had noticed but sriracha is harder to find now and it’s more brown than red because they’re having to use some not as ripe green peppers instead of the ripened red ones.

I also use Swiss cheese for this one pot pasta because it is only 50mg sodium per serving, as opposed to like 200mg you would get from a cheddar cheese.

I used frozen butternut squash at the end of this recipe so it stayed in its cubed form. I went ahead and steamed it in the bag as per the directions before adding the butternut squash to this one pot pumpkin pasta using my retro microwave.

Be sure to watch my video for more details of the process before making this delicious one pot creamy pumpkin and squash pasta.

Ingredients:

• 1 onion, chopped
• 6-8 sweet peppers, chopped
• 5 cups unsalted chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 cup pumpkin purée
• 1 tsp each mushroom powder, garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, paprika
• 14.5oz Protein Penne Pasta
• 8oz cream cheese, softened
• 4oz shredded Swiss cheese
• 1-2tsp hot sauce (optional)
• 12oz frozen butternut squash, steamed in bag

Directions:

1. Sauté onion and peppers
2. Add broth, pumpkin purée, seasonings and pasta, stir
3. Add lid and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for 8-10 minutes, until al dente
4. Add cream cheese, cheese and hot sauce, stir to melt
5. Toss in the butternut squash
6. Enjoy!

I added some dried parsley flakes on top because it’s pretty. I usually add some chopped green onion or chives if I have them on hand.

Please share your one pot pasta creations on my social media when you make this recipe! I love to connect and see your beautiful work!

This new red nail polish is by Sally Hansen, and it’s part of the insta dri ring pop collection. I am obsessed. I always use their miracle gel top coat to seal it in and make it shiny. No UV light needed.

Ok love you bye.

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