Show me someone who doesn’t love fettuccini and I will show you a liar. Or someone with amazing willpower.

Cream. Butter. Cheese. The holy trinity of a delicious, artery-clogging meal.

Unless you make a sauce that is just as creamy and rich, without all the unnecessary cholesterol and saturated fat. Sure, Fettuccini every now and then isn’t a big deal. We are all allowed an over-indulgent meal every now and then. But why? When you can make the same sauce with a fraction of the typical calories and fat, I don’t see the need. Plus, this version allows Fettuccini to be on the menu a lot more often. A win-win if you’re counting.

Since all of my recipes this month have been getting a pumpkin makeover,-fettuccini is no exception. A simple addition of pumpkin, sage, and nutmeg makes this the perfect fall meal- and fancy enough to serve for others. It is so good, it has made the short list of my Thanksgiving menu.

Pumpkin Fettuccini

Ingredients: 
1 lb. fettuccini pasta
1 recipe Pumpkin sauce, below

Bring a lot pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook until al dente. Bonus points if you use fresh pasta for this.

Warm the prepared pumpkin sauce in a saucepan. While cooking, add 1/2 cup of the pasta water after the noodles have been cooking for at least 5 minutes. The starches in the water help the sauce to bind to the noodles.

Toss the sauce with the fettuccini. Season with fresh cracked pepper and/or cheese to top.

Pumpkin Sauce: 
1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water for at least 1 hour
2 tbsp. lemon juice
1 cup water
2 tbsp. parmesan cheese or veggie parmesan

In a high powered blender or food processor, combine all ingredients and blend until smooth, about 3 minutes.

Add in 1 tsp. dried sage, 1/4 tsp. fresh ground nutmeg and 1/2 cup canned pumpkin. Blend for another minute, until combined.

Mangiamo!

I am so excited for this month’s Recipe Redux theme, “Orange your glad it’s fall?”

Yes. Yes I am.

I get so excited with the change of the seasons, enjoying new flavors that I haven’t had for almost a year. Pumpkin, butternut squash, sweet potatoes, carrots, and more. What do all of these wonderful vegetables have in common? They are loaded with the orange-pigmented antioxidant, beta carotene. Pumpkin is also loaded with vitamin C, fiber, potassium, and folate.

The problem with most pumpkin-flavored items is that they tend to be loaded with fat and excess sugar. Pumpkin-pie, frapps, cheesecake, all take innocent pumpkin and turn it into junk food.

These pumpkin shakes still deliver on the benefits of pumpkin, without all the added frills. Perfect for breakfast, as a snack, dessert, its the perfect way to celebrate Fall.

Spiced Pumpkin Shake

Ingredients:
1/2 cup pumpkin
1/2 frozen banana
2.5 tbsp. sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1/4 tsp. cinnamon

Place all ingredients in a blender, puree into smooth. Makes 1 large serving, 2 small shakes.

You’ve been warned, this is just one of many pumpkin posts to come. I used to think that summer was my favorite season but fall is quickly becoming my favorite time of year. Adding pumpkin to basic dishes like pancakes makes them seem special. Try these next time you want to start your morning off right!

Spiced Pumpkin Pancakes

Ingredients:
1 cup whole grain spelt flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

Spice mixture:
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. cardamom
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. nutmeg

1/3 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup vanilla almond milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup canola oil

Combine flours, baking soda, salt and spice mixture. Beat together almond milk, oil, extract, and pumpkin puree. Pour milk mixture into flour and stir until combined.

Heat a non-stick griddle to medium heat. If needed, use cooking spray or oil to grease the pan. Pour 1/2 cup batter onto the hot griddle. Let sit until bubbles form and flip. I think these taste best with a slightly crisp outside and fluffy inside so make sure you don’t flip them too soon.

Enjoy with real maple syrup for a delicious fall treat.

Makes ~ 8 pancakes, per serving: 185 calories, 8g fat, 26 CHO, 3g fiber, 4g protein

Yum! The ultimate holiday indulgence… pumpkin cheesecake. Although this isn’t exactly calorie free, this recipe is much healthier than a traditional cheesecake. Most are made with 4 packages of cream cheese! I’m all for a treat or two over the holidays, but I prefer to make better for you items that are just as delicious as the “real thing.”

I made Morgans Pumpkin Buttera few weeks ago and was looking for a fun way to use some of it up. You don’t have to make the butter to enjoy this recipe, but I highly recommend it. Not only will you get to use it in this cheescake recipe, but you’ll also have leftover pumpkin butter to spread on other holiday fare.

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Gingerbread Crust

Crust Ingredients:
1 cup gingersnaps, finely crushed
1 cup walnuts, finely crushed
4 tbsp. Earth Balance margarine, melted

In a blender or food processor, finely combine the walnuts and gingersnaps. Empty into a bowl and add the melted maragine. Quickly stir to distribute the margarine amoung the crumbs. Empty the crust batter into a 10″ springform pan and press crust into the bottom. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes until set. Remove from oven and combine ingredients for filling.

Filling Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups Morgans Pumpkin Butter *
1 package silken tofu
1 8 oz. container tofutti cream cheese or other cream cheese
1/2 cup sugar or maple syrup
2 tbsp. corn starch or arrowroot powder

Combine all ingredients in a blender or food processor and combine until creamy and smooth. Pour ontop of the crust and bake for 45-50 minutes in a 350 degree oven. Mine came out a bit cracked ontop but you can avoid this by baking in a water bath. Simply cover the seals of the springform pan with aluminum foil (so the water doesn’t seep in and make the crust soggy) and place in a larger baking dish filled a few inches deep with water. Bake as directed above.

*No time to make pumpkin butter? No problem. Just combine a cup of pumpkin puree with 1/2 cup sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and a touch of ginger. Process with the other filling ingredients.

Enjoy!