Pumpkin Baked Ziti
See how this recipe was made on Facebook Live!
Ingredients
- 1 pound rigatoni, penne or ziti
- Salt
- 1 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 pound sweet Italian sausage, loose or casings removed
- 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, grated or finely chopped
- 2 1/2 tablespoons fresh sage leaves, finely chopped, divided
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups 2% or whole milk
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 2 cups grated Parmigiano Reggiano, divided
- 2 1/2 cups grated mozzarella, divided
- 10 to 12 grates fresh nutmeg
- Pepper
- 1 15-ounce can pumpkin purée
Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Liberally salt the water and cook pasta 2 minutes shy of al dente according to box instructions. Drain and reserve.
In the same pan, melt butter until it begins to foam. Sprinkle flour into the pan and whisk for about 45 seconds to 1 minute, until butter and flour begin to smell nutty and fragrant. Slowly whisk in milk and stock until very well-combined and there are no lumps in the sauce. Bring béchamel to a bubble, reduce heat, and cook until thickened, about 4-5 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in 1 cup Parmigiano Reggiano and 1 1/2 cups mozzarella. Stir until the cheeses have completely melted into the sauce. Season with nutmeg, salt and pepper, and fold in pumpkin purée.
To the pasta pot or a large mixing bowl, add cooked pasta, and sausage mixture .Carefully stir everything together with a large spatula, making sure you don’t overmix or break the pasta. Transfer pasta mixture into a 13x9-inch casserole dish. Sprinkle the remaining Parmigiano Reggiano, mozzarella, and sage over the pumpkin béchamel. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until bubbly on the sides and brown on the top. Let pasta sit at least 5 minutes before serving.