Pumpkin Alfredo!

This might sound weird, but I promise it was delicious. Jared is fairly picky when it comes to things like this and he loved it! I thought it was a fun October dish for Halloween time. You know... Orange Alfredo?! Haha

Pumpkin Alfredo
Recipe from Our Best Bites

1 Package Fresh Pasta
1/2 batch Guiltless Alfredo Sauce (note to cut recipe in half if you do make this)
(or 10oz prepared Alfredo)
1/2 T real butter
1/4 C Finely minced onion
1/2 C canned pumpkin (try more if you love pumpkin, this is really mild)
2 T Chicken broth (Can substitute with milk or veg. broth)
1T chopped fresh sage (1t dried leaves)
1/2 T fresh thyme (1/2 t dried leaves)

Follow instructions on pasta to cook. In a separate sauce pan melt butter on medium heat. When melted, add onion. Make sure your onion is really finely diced. Since you have a nice smooth sauce, you don't want big chunks of onion, you just want little bits. Saute until soft. Since they're small it should only take a couple of minutes. Add chicken broth and herbs.

Use a spatula to deglaze the pan a bit and get any cooked bits of onion off the bottom. Add pumpkin and whisk to combine. Add alfredo sauce, stir to combine, and cook until heated through. Depending on the alfredo you use you may need to adjust salt and pepper. It was a little thick so I added a couple of tablespoons of milk to it, and I could have added more! (You can tell in the picture it was a pretty thick sauce.)

Serve on top of prepared pasta and top with freshly grated Parmesan cheese and a sprinkling of extra herbs.

Guiltless Alfredo Sauce

2 C low-fat milk (The recipe says not skim, but I used it anyways and it worked great)
1/3 C (3 oz) 1/3-less-fat cream cheese
2 T flour
1 t salt
1 T butter
3 garlic cloves
1 C grated Parmesan cheese

Toss the milk, cream cheese, flour, and salt in a blender. Process until smooth and set aside.

In a non-stick sauce pan, melt butter on med-high heat and add garlic. Let the garlic saute for about 30 seconds, you don't want to burn it. It should be nice and bubbly.

Then add milk mixture to the pan. Stir constantly for about 3 or 4 minutes or until it just comes to a simmer. Keep stirring and let it cook for a few minutes more. It should be much thicker now.
When it's nice and thick (it should look as thick as a normal alfredo sauce) remove the pan from the heat. Add the cheese, stir it up and then cover immediately. Let stand for at least 10 minutes before using. It will continue to thicken upon standing. Also, if you have leftovers in the fridge, the sauce will thicken almost into a solid. Just re-heat and add a little milk and it will be back to normal again!