This pumpkin macaroni and cheese is very much fall vibes and my first stove-top macaroni and cheese recipe ever. It is just so creamy and saucy. Because it has such epic levels of comfort food vibes, it is featured in my newest holiday cookbook, Cozy Delights. This needs literally less than 10 ingredients, is ready in under 30 minutes and is so delicious.
Firstly you boil the macaroni until it gets soft, but not mushy. Then you drain it and you can rinse it with cold water to remove the excess starch and prevent the pasta from sticking together. Next you make the roux-which is just a fancy way of saying sauce. You’ll be making a pumpkin cheese sauce which is just lots of cheese, cream, butter, a bit of flour, seasoning, herbs and pumpkin purée (not in this particular order). Pumpkin purée is not to be confused with pumpkin pie filling which is sweet and used to make pumpkin pie. Then you whisk it until you get a smooth, yellowish sauce.
Next goes in your boiled macaroni and you let it simmer until it is well coated in cheesy pumpkin sauce. It’s just that easy! Try to serve it immediately for saucy results. Like any other cheesy meal, this pumpkin macaroni and cheese thickens up as it cools. So it is best to serve it hot. I served mine up with some fried chicken and it was wonderful!
To get equally delicious comfort food, you can grab a copy of the Cozy Delights cookbook on Amazon!
Ingredients
2 cups elbow macaroni
4 cups water to boil macaroni
1 teaspoon salt to boil macaroni
2-3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 cups heavy cream or full-fat milk
2 cups shredded cheddar
1/2 cup pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie)
1-2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Chopped fresh herbs (I used rosemary)
Instructions
- Boil macaroni with water and salt in a saucepan until just soft.
- Drain the water from the macaroni and rinse it with cold water (see notes). Set aside.
- Melt butter in a large skillet, add flour and pumpkin purée.
- Then stir in cream. Whisk until smooth. Let it thicken up for a few minutes then add your cheese, Italian seasoning, garlic, black pepper, and fresh herbs.
- Mix in the macaroni and let it simmer on medium heat for another 5 minutes and serve immediately.
- Leftovers are okay in the fridge for about 5-6 days.
Notes
Rinsing the macaroni with cold water helps remove the excess starch around the pasta. This way your sauce doesn't get too clumpy and thick. Remember this is a stove-top macaroni and cheese so it needs to be very saucy. This step isn't necessary for baked macaroni and cheese.