GF Pasta with Pumpkin and Sausage

I've been wanting to try this Rachael Ray recipe for a long time, and I'm so glad I did! It actually turned out quite well. It's a good and surprisingly creamy pasta dish without being drenched in sauce. And, there is only a hint of pumpkin/autumn flavors. The recipe below is my improvised recipe to make it GF and reflect what ingredients I had in the house.

• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb. penne pasta (I used Hodgson Mill Brown Rice with Golden Milled Flax Seed)
• 1 drizzle EVOO
• 1 lb. maple flavored pork sausage
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp thyme
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 14 ounces chicken broth
• 1 cup canned pumpkin puree
• 2 ½ TBS butter, melted
• ¼ plus 1/8 cup skim milk
• 1 ½ tsp cornstarch
• 3 pinches of cinnamon
• 3 pinches of nutmeg
• Parmesan-Romano cheese, grated

Cook pasta noodles according to package directions until al dente. Drain.

In a medium-sized pan, brown sausage. Remove to paper towel-lined plate to drain and return pan to heat. Add EVOO to pan and sauté onion and garlic 5 minutes. Add bay leaf, thyme, and wine to pot. Reduce wine for 2 minutes. Add broth and pumpkin and combine, stirring sauce until it comes to a bubble. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, butter, and cornstarch. Return sausage to pan, reduce heat, and stir in milk mixture. Season with cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and pepper and simmer 5 minutes.

To serve, return drained, cooked pasta to the pot you cooked it in. Remove bay leaf from sauce and pour sauce over pasta. Toss pasta and sauce 2 minutes over low heat so pasta can absorb flavors. Top bowls of pasta with Parmesan-Romano cheese, and serve with a green salad on the side.