With yesterday marking the first official day of Fall, it only felt right to celebrate accordingly by starting my morning with a Pumpkin Spice Latte before embarking on a day filled with local fairs and festivals in and around the Pioneer Valley with my mother and Oliver – and then ending the evening by preparing a cozy, filling dish that was loaded with seasonal flavors that her and I would both enjoy.
Over the Summer, I had shared a quick and easy pasta recipe comprised (mostly) of things I had found at Trader Joe’s, and I think it’s about time to share an Autumnal version since I had recently done a big grocery haul and picked up quite a few delicious things to whip up!
And while my Summertime dish included “light” and refreshing tastes and textures, like lemon and ricotta – this Fall pasta recipe has a lot of pumpkin, squash, and smoked gouda to make it the perfect comfort food to savor on a chilly, rainy Autumn day. Even the pasta itself looks like mini pumpkins!
And as usual – it doesn’t take long at all!
WHAT YOU’LL NEED:
6 SERVINGS:
- 1 Package Trader Joe’s Fall Zucchette Pasta
- 1 Jar Trader Joe’s Autumnal Harvest Creamy Pasta Sauce
- 1 Cup Grated Smoked Gouda
- A Pinch of Parsley Flakes
- A Pinch of Red Chili Flakes (optional)
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
WHAT YOU’LL DO:
1. Cook the box of Zucchette pasta as outlined on the packaging, saving about a half cup of the pasta water to pour back into your pot after straining the rest. While the pasta is cooking, pour the jar of Harvest Pasta Sauce into a separate, smaller pot and set the burner to low/simmer to warm it up.
2. Gradually add the pot of warmed Harvest Pasta Sauce to your pot of pasta, mixing/stirring to make sure it coats all of the Zucchette evenly. (** Note: Not all of the pasta is going to maintain it’s shape. Be prepared for some of the “pumpkin” shells to break apart and/or into smaller pieces! I know it’s not aesthetically pleasing, but it will still taste great, I promise! **)
3. Add the cup of grated smoked gouda, parsley flakes and red chili flakes to your pasta and stir to combine again until the cheese is nice and melted throughout the Zucchette. Feel free to measure with your heart on these, as well. I like a little more heat with my food, so I added an extra dash of the chili flakes to my pot – but you can go less or more with the cheese and seasonings depending on your personal preference!
4. Add salt and pepper, give the pasta one more good mix for good measure, plate/serve – and enjoy!
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I was grateful that some of the Zuchette kept it’s shape even after being cooked and mixed with the other ingredients, because it really is super cute on the plate!
I served this one with some toasted sourdough that I slathered with an onion and garlic gouda spread from one of the local dairy farms near me, and which my mother and I used to collect any of the Harvest Sauce sauce left over on our dishes.
It was a hit – and something I’m looking forward to making again throughout this season!
xo
Coffee & Chiffon 