Endless Pastabilities for Fall and Winter!
With autumn’s shorter days and the first snowfall of the season already behind us, there isn’t a better time to try these satisfying pasta dishes you can create in your own kitchen! From traditional Italian favorites to easy-to-make slow cooker recipes to vegetarian and gluten-free options with seasonal ingredients, the pastabilities are endless!
Fettucine Bolognese and Pumpkin Lasagna
There isn’t a better way to warm up on a chilly fall evening than with a heaping plate of homemade tomato-meat sauce on thick fettuccine noodles. This traditional Fettuccine Bolognese recipe from Life Is But a Dish calls for ground turkey, but feel free to substitute ground beef, ground Italian sausage—or a combination of all three!
Summer is abundant with light vegetarian pasta offerings, but when fall arrives, what’s a vegetarian to do? This hearty and delicious Pumpkin Lasagna recipe from Food and Wine has a creamy pumpkin-base sauce made from canned puree—but what makes it especially unusual is there are no tomatoes in the recipe. Instead, there are layers of dark green Swiss chard and rich ricotta—simply delicious and fully satisfying!
Kids’ Favorite – Crockpot Mac and Cheese!
The perfect recipe for those cold days when you’re home with the kids—but would rather hang out with them than cook all day. This hearty homemade version of Mac and Cheese from The Spruce Eats cooks entirely in the crockpot—even the pasta! The timing must be carefully watched, however, so this is not the kind of recipe you make and then leave the house for hours.
The kind of recipe it IS? Creamy and customizable, with whatever kinds of real cheese you choose to add! Just don’t forget to include American as one of them—it holds the casserole together!
Sumptuous Soup and One-Dish Meals
Here’s a hearty pasta and bean soup that’s easy to make and naturally vegan—but as packed with protein and flavor as this dish is, no one will ever suspect that anything’s missing. The flavor comes from the hearty white beans simmered in basil and tomato sauce, and the delicate bowtie or shell pasta balances out the protein with plenty of carbs! If you’re not vegan, add some grated Parmesan cheese on top!
This one-dish meal from Food Republic may seem too decadent for a weeknight dinner, but as easy as it is to make, you can impress your family any day of the week! The Chicken Alfredo Tortellini uses tender chicken breasts, real cream and Parmesan, garlic and nutmeg all cook together for hours with frozen or refrigerated cheese tortellini—in a slow cooker! This dish is rich enough to serve as the main course for a special occasion!
Spectacular Gluten-Free Pasta
It’s always a dilemma: the dinner party guest who doesn’t eat gluten. When serving pasta, this can really be a problem, but if you’re up for a challenge, try this Gluten-Free Homemade Sweet Potato Gnocchi from chef-bloggers Julie and Debbie at Cooks with Cocktails. The recipe is for gnocchi with brown butter and parmesan, but this pair of cooks not only walks you through the how-to of gnocchi-making, but also offers up multiple recipes to impress family, friends and drop-in guests!
Consider the Possibilities at Crystal Valley
Your very own designer kitchen in the master-planned community of Crystal Valley is the perfect place to whip up tasty new recipes! Check out this fast-growing community, with new homes from Kauffman Homes, Century Communities, D.R. Horton, and Richmond American Homes. There’s lots to do in the surrounding area, so stop by to find the new home of your dreams in ranch and two-story models, priced from the $300s.
