Bacon & Pumpkin Pasta Sauce Recipe
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Serves 4
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 45 minutes
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped (see tip below)
- 1 carrot, finely chopped
- 1 stick celery, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic finely chopped
- 250g/8.83ozs bacon, finely chopped
- 2 cups pumpkin puree*
- 1 tomato, chopped
- 1/2 cup chicken stock
- 1/2 cup cream
- Salt, black pepper and a pinch of sugar to taste
- 400g/14.13ozs. spaghetti
You can use canned pumpkin but since it isn't easy to find in Australia I recommend making your own. Roast or steam your pumpkin until soft (I roast it on 180C/350F skin on and seeds inside and then pull skin and seeds out easily when cooked). Then puree in a food processor.
Tip: make use of your food processor and use it to chop up the mirepoix (onion, celery and carrot), the bacon and then make the pumpkin puree and tomato.
Step 1 - Heat the olive oil in a large pot on medium heat. Add the onion, carrot and celery and saute until fragrant (don't rush this, you absolutely don't want the onion to taste raw in the sauce). Add the garlic and saute for another couple of minutes. Then turn the heat up to medium high and add the bacon and cook through until the bacon releases the fat.
Step 2 - While the sauce is cooking place the pasta onto the boil and cook until al dente. Then process the pumpkin and tomato in a food processor until smooth. When the bacon is cooked in the pan with the mirepoix, add the pumpkin and tomato puree and chicken stock. Simmer until flavours develop and add cream and seasoning - you will need to balance the sweetnes of the pumpkin with salt. Add plenty of freshly ground black pepper and then add the drained pasta into the sauce and coat every strand with this luscious sauce.