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This high protein pumpkin pasta sauce is creamy, so flavorful and packed with protein and fiber. It’s made with nutritious ingredients like real pumpkin, cottage cheese, garlic and sage and perfect for a cozy fall meal.
High Protein Pumpkin Sauce
Cozy fall flavors with a big boost of protein- that’s what you’re getting in this creamy pumpkin sauce recipe! It’s packed with flavor from fresh sage, garlic and parmesan plus loaded with creaminess and protein from cottage cheese.
I love blending cottage cheese into creamy sauces, like in my Cottage Cheese Pasta Sauce and High Protein Mac and Cheese. Here’s why you’ll love this one too!
- Protein-packed. A serving of this easy pumpkin pasta sauce packs 30 grams of protein and 12 grams of fiber. It’s ultra-satisfying and filling.
- Seasonal and SO flavorful. It has all the best flavors of fall from pumpkin paired sage, parmesan and garlic. It’s so delicious and incredibly flavorful. Savory dishes are great for pumpkin season too!
- Family-friendly. It’s creamy, cheesy and made with simple ingredients for a meal you’ll love serving your family (and they’ll love too!).
- Easy. Sauté a few veggies, blend everything up, toss in your favorite pasta and you’re good to go! It’s perfect for busy weeknights and done in under 30 minutes.
This dinner is the perfect way to celebrate pumpkin season. And what better way to end the meal than with some more pumpkin recipes like my Ninja Creami Pumpkin Ice Cream or Cottage Cheese Pumpkin Muffins!
Ingredients
For full recipe instructions and complete list of ingredients, scroll down to the recipe card at the bottom of this page.
- Pumpkin: Canned pumpkin puree is the base for this pumpkin season inspired sauce. Make sure to use real pumpkin and not pumpkin pie filling! Homemade fresh pumpkin puree would work too.
- Cottage cheese: Creamy cottage cheese adds extra protein and tons of creaminess- it’s a great base for creamy sauces. And don’t worry, everything is blended smooth.
- Parmesan cheese: Parmesan cheese adds lots of cheesy flavor!
- Butter: For sautéing the veggies. Olive oil works too.
- Garlic, red bell pepper and onion: Sautéed onion and lots of garlic cloves adds savory flavor to this delicious sauce. A red bell pepper gives a little nutrition boost and adds color!
- Fresh sage leaves: The perfect complement to all the savory pumpkin flavor! Fresh rosemary would be delicious too.
- Milk: Milk keeps things light and creamy versus using heavy cream.
- Lemon juice: For a bit of brightness and acidity.
- Salt and pepper: To taste.
- Chickpea pasta: Any type of pasta works, but I like the protein and fiber that chickpea pasta brings with great pasta texture.
Variations
- Add even more protein. Add ground turkey, grilled chicken breast, my Air Fryer Turkey Meatballs any other protein you like to boost it even more.
- Tomato pumpkin pasta sauce. Swap the milk for tomato sauce and add 2 tbsp of tomato paste with your sautéed veggies for a tomato-based sauce.
- Make it spicy. Add 1/2-1 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes.
- Use butternut squash. Swap in cooked butternut squash instead of pumpkin.
- Bake. For a baked dish, add pasta to a baking dish and top with a mixture of 2 tbsp melted butter, 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs and 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top and then bake at 400 until golden brown.
How To Make Protein Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
- Sauté veggies. Melt butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add garlic, onions, red pepper and sage. Sauté 6–7 minutes until veggies are soft.
- Add ingredients. Add sauteéd onions, garlic, pepper and sage as well as all remaining ingredients to a high-speed blender.
- Blend. Blend on high until smooth, about 1-2 minutes (if it’s not completely smooth, keep blending or turn up the power). Add additional salt, pepper or lemon juice to taste.
- Toss. Pour over cooked pasta and toss until combined. Heat on low in a large skillet until warm enough to serve. Be careful to not overheat or the sauce may separate a bit.
How To Store
Store leftover pumpkin sauce in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat on low in a saucepan or microwave in 15-30 second increments.
Jamie’s Tips
Tips For Success
- Use full fat cottage cheese. Low fat and fat-free cottage cheese tends to have more moisture and less creaminess. It’s more likely to separate when heated, so I recommend full fat or at least 2% for best results!
- Blend blend blend! Blending until complete smooth is the key to this creamy pumpkin pasta recipe, so if your sauce isn’t creamy, keep blending or turn up the power. You can also add a tiny extra splash milk, pasta water or vegetable broth if needed.
- Heat on low. Cottage cheese tends to separate in sauces if it’s heated too high or too quickly. Keep your heat low while you’re heating up your finished pasta to keep everything smooth and creamy.
More Fall Dinner Ideas
If you’ve made and loved these High Protein Pumpkin Pasta Sauce or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and comments below!
High Protein Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 1 red bell pepper, chopped
- 3-4 large fresh sage leaves
- 6 cloves garlic, roughly minced
- 1 cup pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 cup cottage cheese, full fat
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, shredded or grated
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 tbsp lemon juice, more to taste
- 1/2 tsp salt, more to taste
- 1/4 tsp black pepper, more to taste
- 16 oz. chickpea pasta, cooked
Instructions
- Melt butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add garlic, onions, red pepper and sage. Saute 6–7 minutes until veggies are soft.
- Add sauteéd onions, garlic, pepper and sage as well as all remaining ingredients to a high speed blender.
- Blend on high for 1-2 minutes until completely smooth (it should very very smooth, if it’s not– keep blending or turn up the power higher) Stop to scrape down the sides as needed. Taste test and add additional salt, pepper or lemon juice to taste.
- Pour over cooked pasta and toss until combined. Heat on low until warm enough to serve. Be careful to not overheat or the sauce may separate a bit.
- Top with extra parmesan cheese and fresh herbs if desired.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an estimate.
Food photography by Marie-Catherine Dubé.
