We are now two weeks into the New Year. Any fascinating resolutions you want to share? Nothing outrageous from me… the usual diet hopes, I guess. (I think we all know how that is going to go.) As we approached the new year, I worked on a new pasta sauce. Nothing revolutionary, mind you, but it is comforting in winter and tastes really good.
I created this new sauce because my friend, Joanne, sent me a new form of pasta. You may have heard of it — cascatelli. It got a lot of play in the culinary news and chatter circuit. This new pasta form was created by Dan Pashman, host of The Sporkful podcast, in cooperation with the pasta company Sfoglini. Cascatelli (little waterfalls) were released to the world in 2021. Pashman claimed there should be one pasta for any and all sauces, a pasta shape that met three criteria: forkability, saucability, and toothsinkability. (Readers might note that those words have not yet been added to the Oxford English Dictionary.)
Encountering new pasta forms is fun; various pasta shapes evolved along with specific sauces, and generations of use have perfected the pairings. Traditions are strong in Italy. While Pashman said that cascatelli are the perfect shape for a meat sauce, I definitely prefer my Bolognese with the traditional fresh tagliatelle. But, as cascatelli have no traditional sauce, the field is wide open, so here I am, stepping in with a sauce of my own invention that pairs well with the toothsinkability of cascatelli.
I took a nod from the tradition of pumpkin ravioli, turned them “inside out,” and topped the cascatelli with a creamy pumpkin sauce, plus fried sage leaves and brown butter. I added cubed Gorgonzola cheese (not dolce) for a little twist. Combining something old with something new can make for a great marriage.
~ David
Creamy Pumpkin Pasta with Gorgonzola and Fried Sage
To print the recipe, please click on the small print icon below.
Ingredients
- 4 tablespoon unsalted butter, divided
- 12 sage leaves
- 8 ounces short dried pasta, such as cascatelli or campanelle
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1/2 cup puréed roasted pumpkin or butternut squash (see notes)
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- pasta water, as needed
- 2 ounces Gorgonzola, cubed
Instructions
- Place 2 tablespoon of the butter in a small skillet over medium high heat. Add the sage leaves and cook in the bubbling butter until the butter is browned. Drain the sage leaves on a paper towel (they will crisp as they cool), and take the butter off the heat. Set aside both the leaves and the browned butter.
- Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Cook pasta per package instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking, heat the remaining two tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and cook until clear. Then add the pumpkin purée and cook for 5 minutes to reduce any water left in the purée. Season well with salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste. (Go easy on the nutmeg!)
- Add the cream and stir it into the pumpkin using a spatula, mashing the pumpkin and cream together. If the pasta isn’t yet al dente, lower the sauce heat and let it simmer while the pasta finishes cooking. When the pasta is done, transfer it to the skillet with the sauce and toss to combine. If too thick, add pasta cooking water until it reaches the perfect consistency.
- Reheat the browned butter. Divide the pasta among heated bowls, top with Gorgonzola cheese and then drizzle the hot brown butter over the cheese to soften it. Top with crispy sage leaves and serve.
- Serves 4 as a first course, or 2 as a main course.
- Note: A small sugar pumpkin or butternut squash is easily roasted. The weight should be between 1 and 2 pounds. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and oil the foil. Cut the pumpkin/squash in half from stem to bottom. Scoop out the seeds and stringy parts, and place cut-side down on the foil. Bake for one hour, let cool, and scoop out the flesh.
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Chef Mimi
January 14, 2023 at 5:35 amAbsolutely wonderful! In a case like this I have no problem getting out the organic purée in a can. It’s easy to use leftover purée as well. And much easier then prepping a squash. I love the idea of chunks of blue.
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:39 pmCanned works beautifully here, Mimi — canned pumpkin is one fo the few canned things I will purchase!
Marcelle Bolton
January 14, 2023 at 9:47 amThis is a beautiful dish, David!! I love pumpkin ravioli with a buttery sage sauce, and I love your twist on that here! Gorgonzola cheese is must for my serving, I love it. How fun that there is a new pasta shape for the world to enjoy, I think the little waterfalls are very pretty! I think those descriptive terms are perfect… definitely overdue for addition to dictionary 😊 Especially “toothsinkability”!!
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:38 pmI thought is new words were rather funny! I hope you enjoy the pasta – do I take it you are the only blue cheese eater in your house?
Mad Dog
January 14, 2023 at 10:01 amThat looks delicious – I might try a variation with Stilton.
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:37 pmNice idea, Mad Dog. I was keeping it Italian but Stilton or Roquefort would be great.
Carolyne
January 14, 2023 at 10:12 amLove it!
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:35 pmWhat is not to love?
Eha
January 14, 2023 at 2:45 pmPumpkin is a hugely popular vegetable Down Under usually seen oven roasted for Sunday lunch or enjoyed as soup. Tell the truth it has not been a firm favourite in this house, but your recipe just has to be tried ! Like the sage and nutmeg and wanting to taste the gorgonzola makes one think of a prompt trip into the kitchen . . . and I do like MD’s idea of Stilton. Oh, like the look of your new pasta also . . .
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:35 pmI think any good, strong blue cheese would work, Eha – I used Gorgonzola to keep it Italian. But Mad Dogs suggestion of Stilton is nice, too.
Valentina
January 14, 2023 at 3:07 pmI’m one who always has canned pumpkin at the ready. Love it for so many things and with Gorgonzola . . . yum. On another note (or related), the Sporkful podcast is one of my favorites. It’s always in my driving line up. 🙂 ~Valentina
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:32 pmI, too, keep canned pumpkin at the ready but also roast multiple pie pumpkins in the fall and freeze the purée in cup amounts for pies… and now pasta!
sherry
January 15, 2023 at 3:55 ami’ve been making a pumpkin puree myself tonight and I very happily ‘cheated’ by using a packet of fresh, diced butternut pumpkin! Yay so no peeling or cutting for moi. so happy! You may remember i don’t eat pasta (unless forced to) so maybe i’ll just stick to the pumpkin with chickpeas and scallops i made tonight :=) cheers! and no new year’s resolutions for me either… tee hee.
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:30 pmYour scallops do sound quite wonderful! And, for me, resolutions are just more rules to break.
Ronit
January 15, 2023 at 9:34 amI’m not familiar with this type of pasta, so thanks for introducing.
Pumpkin, blue cheese and sage are so perfect together. This is on my list to try soon. 🙂
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:30 pmIt is a good combination and I am grateful to play with the combination in a new way.
Jeff the Chef
January 15, 2023 at 12:01 pmHow cool! I didn’t know about this new pasta shape. I love the sauce you’ve come up with for it.
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:29 pmThanks, Jeff. The sauce has quickly become a new favorite in our house!
Frank | Memorie di Angelina
January 16, 2023 at 7:53 amSo I’m *very* curious to know your opinion of/thoughts on cascatelli, having actually eaten them.
As a follower of the Sporkful podcast, of course I’d heard about them. Ad nauseum… 😆 I once saw them in a local store but found their shape a bit well, disconcerting. A little too “toothsinkable”. So I didn’t wind up buying them. But perhaps I was wrong. Your verdict?
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:28 pmFrank – to be honest, the taste and bite of the pasta was very good. The shape merely looked like an oddly stretched radiatore… It did hold the sauce nicely, but that isn’t to say that any number of already extant pasta shapes would have worked. I was also stunned at how long it took to cook the pasta — as I recall, it was nearly 20 minutes. So, the verdict? Very good but I don’t think I would go out of my way to find them. (I don’t think anyone here carries them, though Trader Joe’s version is available and falls apart…) Maybe you should give them a try – I would love to know what you think.
Karen (Back Road Journal)
January 16, 2023 at 10:05 amI like your culinary twist to pumpkin ravioli with brown butter and sage. I love gorgonzola so I must give your recipe a try.
Cocoa & Lavender
January 16, 2023 at 1:23 pmThanks, Karen. There is nothing like classic combinations of flavors. I might actually be able to comment on your bog again – stay tuned!
Ron
January 17, 2023 at 3:35 amFirst, I’m envious of you guys over the pond as cascatelli is unavailable here. It looks to be a fun shape and perfect for your wonderful sauce. Have you ever tried the trottole pasta shape, it’s also good for grabbing the sauce.
We enjoy winter squash with pasta, but I’ve not considered using the gorgonzola. I like that idea.
My big (not a resolution as they never work for me) challenge for the new year is to say healthy and reduce my wine consumption. My doctor tells me they go hand in hand, we’ll see…
Cocoa & Lavender
January 18, 2023 at 9:58 amThere are so many varieties of pasta that will do just fine for this dish, Ron. I haven’t tried (or heard of) trottole — I will look for it! I do like fun pasta shapes. I hope you like my sauce!
I have to say that wine does really have an effect on our health. I’m doing “dry January” and it’s amazing that a) I haven’t missed it, and B) I’ve dropped almost 10 pounds already. The weight loss isn’t visible, but I’m sure it will make a difference when they are calculating my BMI next time I’m at the doctor. Good luck with your resolution, Ron; I think there’s a healthy balance (pun intended) between giving up wine totally and having a sip here and there.
Ben | Havocinthekitchen
January 17, 2023 at 4:44 pmNo new year resolutions for us – we all know how they work – so sticking to some reasonable plans is the way to go!
I haven’t had Cascatelli pasta yet, but this shape is quite cool. Great sauce, too; I particularly love the sage-butter part. That’s definitely our kind of pasta!
Oh wait, it just occurred to me: “eating more pasta in 2023” would be my resolution! 🙂
Cocoa & Lavender
January 18, 2023 at 9:44 amOkay, Ben, that’s a New Year’s resolution with which I can get on board! More pasta! I’m so glad you liked the recipe, and remember that you don’t have to use that particular pasta shape. Many different kinds will work!
2pots2cook
January 25, 2023 at 5:41 amLove the trio: pasta, pumpkin and sage! I pretend I did not notice New Year Resolution part! LOL
Cocoa & Lavender
January 31, 2023 at 9:34 amWell, if you might have guessed, I ignore the resolution, as well. The way I actually did participate in “dry January.“ It’s shocking how much weight weekend by drinking wine!
Raymund
January 26, 2023 at 1:51 pmWhat an interesting shape, never seen a pasta shaped like that before. Then your suace, as a blue cheese lover this is one new pasta dish I definitely would try, I am not sure if I can get that pasta shape here but I can use others anyways
Cocoa & Lavender
January 31, 2023 at 9:31 amI know you will love this sauce, Raymund, and I’m sure you can find a pasta form that will work just perfectly!
Inger
February 2, 2023 at 6:27 amMy resolutions include working harder to deal with a pre-diabetes diagnoses. So less carbs for me and pasta is sadly a rarer indulgence now. Love the new pasta shape though, reminds me some of radiatore which we used to love for its ability to hold sauce.
Cocoa & Lavender
February 6, 2023 at 8:15 amSo sorry to hear this, Inger – but it is easy to live without carbs and still have fun! I totally agree – radiatore would work fine in place of the cascatelli.