smoked sausage – The Pajama Chef

Pizza gets an autumn twist with pumpkin sauce! Mmmm mmm good!

Welcome to another SRC post! Secret Recipe Club has been my big blog event for most of my blogging career, and it was just announced that the club will be disbanding this fall. But don’t you worry–there are still a few more posts before that happens! Tear! It’s sad, but great to see the club go out on a high note.

This month I was assigned to Natural Noshing. Nora began her blog as a way to share her passion for nutrition and healthy, real food. She has tons of great recipes to share and I love her passion for food! I was drawn to SO many of her healthy recipes–it was hard to pick what to make, but I finally narrowed it down. Breakfast Quesadillas sounded interesting, as did Cappuccino Sour Cream Muffins. But I must have been in a pizza mood when recipe choosing because I loved the sound of anything and everything pizza–Pizza Potatoes! Pizza Quinoa Casserole! And lastly… the winner… Sausage and Pumpkin Pizza!

You guys know I love pumpkin so really, it was a no brainer. I don’t know what took me so long to make this decision. 🙂 Oh wait I do. Ben. He loves pizza, but this qualifies as “weird pizza” in his book so I was a bit skeptical if he would enjoy it. And I do like him to enjoy the food I make. 🙂

Well, I am happy to report that he not only enjoyed it, but he loved it! We both did, actually. It was a wonderful, hearty, fall pizza–the flavorful pumpkin sauce was the perfect base for sausage and kale. Nora’s original recipe used spinach, but she made this recipe as a “clear out the fridge” meal so I decided to do the same here! Why buy something else if you don’t need to? This pizza may just become a surprising fall favorite in our house. Hope you enjoy as much as we did–and thanks, Nora, for the great recipe!

two years ago: Banana Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins
three years ago: Funfetti Cookies
four years ago: Chicken Enchiladas with Green Chili Sour Cream Sauce
five years ago: Roasted Vegetable Soup
six years ago: Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins

Pumpkin and Sausage Pizza

Servings: 8
Time: 2 hours
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from Natural Noshing

Ingredients:

1 pizza crust – I used my favorite recipe but any will do
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons water
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
1 clove garlic, minced
freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces sausage, thinly sliced – smoked sausage is what I used, but chicken sausage, brats, etc. would all be great
1 1/4 cups tightly packed kale, washed and chopped into small pieces
2 tablespoons fresh herbs, chopped – I used rosemary, basil, and marjoram
8 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F [or follow directions for your specific pizza crust].

In a small saucepan, mix pumpkin puree, water, sage, garlic, and pepper. Heat over low heat until combined, then set aside.

In a medium skillet set over medium-high heat, cook sausage for about 2 minutes per side. I used precooked sausage, so this was just to add color. Top with kale and herbs and stir together for about 30 seconds or until kale just begins to wilt.

Spread pumpkin sauce over uncooked crust [unless you bought a precooked crust]. Top with half of the cheese, then the sausage and kale mixture, and finally the rest of the cheese. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted. Broil for a minute to make the cheese look extra delicious, then remove from oven. Let rest for 5 minutes before cutting, then serve and enjoy!

Check out the other SRC recipes today at the link below!

This Baked Rigatoni with Bechamel Sauce has been a family favorite for many years now. My mom first made this dish after watching an episode of Everyday Italian with Giada De Laurentiis. Now we’ve made it many a times and absolutely love the rich, creamy, cheesy pasta. Though the recipe seems a bit intimidating [bechamel sauce… what?], it’s really quite simple.

Though we don’t make it exactly like Giada all of the time, our substitutions are few and equally tasty, usually adding a bit of health and cost benefits. We use turkey smoked sausage for the prosciutto, fat free half and half for the whole milk, and less butter than suggested. One area that I would not recommend a substitution is with the cheese. Yes, fontina is a little expensive… but it is without a doubt worth it. I’ve tried using mozzarella and the rich taste of the dish is lost with a milder cheese.

However you try this pasta, like Giada, like me, or in a new way, you’re sure to enjoy the rich, smooth, luscious taste of this fabulous baked pasta. But as a warning… it is highly addictive. Especially cold out of the fridge at odd hours of the day or night. Not that I know or anything though…

Baked Rigatoni with Bechamel Sauce

Servings: 12
Time: 60 minutes
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from Giada De Laurentiis

Ingredients:

8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 quart half and half, at room temperature [really important to be at room temperature, it makes the sauce stellar!]
pinch of nutmeg
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 cup grated fontina, divided
1/2 pound smoked turkey sausage, julienned
1 pound dried rigatoni

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and grease a 9×13 inch baking dish with cooking spray.

First, make the bechamel sauce. Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour until smooth, approximately 2 minutes. Gradually add the half and half and stir constantly until the sauce is smooth and creamy. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until sauce is thick enough to coat the back of a wooden spoon. This should take about 10-12 minutes. Remove from heat, then stir in nutmeg, 1/2 cup fontina, and smoked sausage. Season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to boil. Add the rigatoni and cook for about 5 minutes. The pasta will be cooking further in the oven so it’s important to make sure the inside is still slightly hard. Drain pasta and return to pot. Stir in bechamel sauce and mix well to coat. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Top with remaining fontina. Bake for 25 minutes or until bubbly and golden brown.

Can be made up to a day ahead, refrigerated, and then baked right before serving—just leave out at room temperature for about 15-20 minutes before baking or add a few minutes on to the baking time.

Question of the Day: What food do you sneak out of the fridge at odd hours?