Pasta with Pumpkin-Cream Sauce

HOWDY friends!  I was home alone and hungry one night, so I just opened the fridge and prayed for ideas.  LOL!  What I came up with just so happened to be delicious, so I had to post this, in case someone out there might like it as much as I did.  (I just love it when an clean-out-the-fridge-experiment turns out so good!)  

I had some leftover pureed pumpkin in the fridge, along with some dairy products that needed to be used, so I thought I'd see what I could come up with.  (Canned pumpkin would work fine, just be sure it is NOT pumpkin pie filling!)  I didn't measure anything, so I can't give you the exact recipe.  I just added stuff to the pumpkin I had left until it looked like the consistency I wanted.  Then I tossed it with some pasta and voilà...total deliciousness!

First, I put some pasta on to boil.  (I had some rigatoni in the pantry, so that's what I used.  It went really well with the sauce.)  While the pasta was cooking, I basically just dumped the pureed pumpkin in a saucepan and added some heavy whipping cream and fat free half & half until it was the consistency I wanted.  Then I heated it over medium heat until hot, and stirred in some shredded Parmesan, crumbled bacon, garlic powder, salt, pepper and a little pasta water.

Once the pasta was done, I just had to drain it and toss it with the sauce.  Oh yeah, this is important...I tossed a few diced roasted almonds on top for garnish too.  (You don't want to leave those out...sooooo good!!)

Last, but not least, I toasted bagel (that needed to be used) and spread with some pesto (also from the fridge) on it, and I had a yummy meal in just a matter of minutes!  The only bad thing was that I just made enough for one meal, so there weren't any leftovers.  Next time, I'll make a bigger batch!

Hope all is well with you my friends.  Get out there and enjoy this lovely fall weather if you can.

Blessings,
--Faithy

Sweet & Salty Brittle Bites

HOWDY!  Once again, I've been away longer than I planned to be.  I hope everyone has been doing well in the meanwhile.  Here in Zig Zag, we’ve been blessed with lots of wonderful drought-ending rain!  It’s wonderful and amazing to see green grass growing, and to have to actually worry about finding time to keep the yard mowed after several years of drought.

I found this recipe quite a while back in a flier (HEB Texas Life) at my local grocery store.  It took me quite a while to get around to actually making it, but boy was it good!

They don’t have the recipe posted online, or I’d share a link for you.  I contacted them about it, and they told me to just give general credit to the HEB Chefs, so I’m more than happy to do that.  I’ve found lots of wonderful recipes in their store publications and on their website.  Check them out if you have a chance.

Anyway, I made a batch of these yummy snacks for our annual family Easter BBQ (with about 200 people in attendance), and they were a hit.  (Yes, there were some folks in my traditional family that thought they was a bit odd, and didn’t even want to try them, but almost all those who actually tasted them thought they were fantastic!)  This recipe is definitely on my “keeper” list now.

My batch turned out a little chewy (not sure if it was the humidity or that I just needed to cook it a little longer) but as it turned out, that was one of the things that folks liked about it, so I’m hoping I can achieve that same texture again sometime.

If you can keep these around for a day or two, the flavors will develop over time, and they’ll be even better.  However, let me warn you, keeping them that long WILL be a challenge!

Without further ado, here’s the recipe…

Sweet & Salty Brittle Bites

Ingredients:

NONSTICK COOKING SPRAY

1 cup sugar

¼ cup water

1 tsp. Kosher salt

2 Tbsp. Adobo sauce (from one 7 oz. can chipotle peppers)

1 cup pepitas (those little green pumpkin seeds)

1/2 cup unsalted roasted peanuts

1/2 cup unsalted roasted cashews

4 slices bacon, cooked, chopped

Instructions:

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with non-stick spray (or you can just use a very well-greased flexible baking sheet).

Combine sugar and water over high heat, stirring until sugar is completely dissolved.  Continue cooking unstirred until sugar reaches a golden syrup like color.  Approximately 4 minutes.  Cook an additional 1 to 2 minutes while gently swirling pan over flame until sugar reaches a darker color.

Carefully stir in adobo sauce then remove from heat.

Stir in nuts and bacon to coat and pour onto prepared baking sheet.

Be sure to allow the brittle cool completely before cracking, then store in an airtight container (after sampling a piece!).

These wonderful little bites of yumminess would make a great gift…especially for the folks in your circles who like anything with bacon and a bit of spiciness.

Step out there on the edge and give these a try…they’re totally delicious and addictive.  After you’ve tried them, let me know your thoughts.  I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

Blessings,

--Faithy