Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Salad

I think fresh pumpkins can be intimidating, but they are so much better and cheaper than the canned puree when they're in season. The real deal doesn't have the metallic, sour, or bitter taste that you sometimes get from the canned stuff, and it has a lot more texture. I have it on good authority that this dish can convert even the staunchest opponents of all things pumpkin, at least for the space of a meal, and it looks enough like macaroni and cheese to trick my picky kid into trying a bite or seven.

The most difficult part of this side dish is preparing the pumpkins, and that's more of a hassle than a challenge. I strongly recommend peeling the dang things first (just a vegetable peeler will get the job done), then halving them, then scooping out the guts, then cubing them. You don't want to try peeling empty pumpkin halves. They have approximately zero structural integrity.

Creamy Pumpkin Pasta
4 tbsp butter
1 large onion, diced
4 garlic cloves, crushed
2 small pie pumpkins, peeled, gutted, and cut into 3/4-inch cubes
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 1/2 cup chicken stock
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup parsley, coarsely chopped
12 oz orecchiette
1 lb bacon, chopped and cooked until crispy
1/2 cup parmesan, grated

1. Melt butter over medium heat in a 4-qt saucepan and add onions and garlic. Cook until the onions are translucent, maybe 10 minutes? I don't know how long. Just stir 'em and use your eyeballs. Add pumpkin cubes, salt, nutmeg, and red pepper flakes and sauté for five minutes, stirring occasionally. Add chicken stock, cover, and simmer for another 10 minutes. The pumpkin cubes will start falling apart at this point, and that's perfect. They're supposed to. Don't panic.

2. While the pumpkin mixture is simmering, start the pasta. I use orecchiette because I'm just so fancy, and I like that they're named after ears, and who doesn't like to eat foods that are shaped like body parts anyway? But you can use any kind of non-stringy noodle: penne, macaroni, corkscrew, shells, whatever. Follow the instructions on the package, but do make sure you salt the water. I heard once that pasta water should taste like the Mediterranean. Just go with it. I cooked mine for about 15 minutes, drained it thoroughly while rinsing it with hot water (which helps the noodles remain separate), and put it in a large-ish serving bowl.

3. Once the pumpkin is done simmering, stir in the milk and parsley. Let it cook a while longer while you prepare the bacon. I use my kitchen scissors to make cutting the bacon less of a pain, but you do you. Once it's all in little pieces, cook it (in a separate pan--NOT with the pumpkin stuff) until it is nice and crispy then drain away the fat. Make sure you turn off all of your burners at this point. Please. Thank you.

4. Bring the bowl of plain pasta next to the pot o' pumpkin. Using a slotted spoon, scoop the mixture over the cooked pasta. You will leave some of the most liquid-y liquid in the pot, and that's okay. (You can save the liquid for a secondary meal if you're into efficiency or whatever. The broth will have tiny bits of pumpkin and parsley, and it makes a light and tasty soup with some crusty bread.) Stir the pumpkin and pasta together and add the cooked bacon and grated parmesan.

You can garnish with more parsley if you'd like. Or you can just eat it.