Browned butter is often referred to as liquid gold by chefs. The butter is heated until the milk solids caramelize, giving it a beautiful golden-brown color and an unmistakable rich nutty flavor that will take your dishes to the next level. The key to success is to watch your butter carefully. It can go from nutty brown deliciousness to burnt in just a moment, so do not walk away while preparing. Best results are achieved when using a light-colored skillet such as ceramic or stainless steel, so you can see the color transformation.
Make Ahead Tip: Prepare a double batch of browned butter and freeze in ice cube trays for later use.
Browned Butter Pumpkin and Bacon Linguine
If you love traditional Italian pastas, then this pumpkin and bacon linguine recipe will blow your mind! Perfectly creamy noodle like linguine pasta, served with crispy bacon, toasted sage and grated parmesan. This restaurant level dish gets ready in around 30 minutes, which makes it a perfect weeknight dinner.
What you'll need...
What you'll need do...
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Cook bacon in a large light-colored skillet over medium heat until crispy. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towel and set aside. Cook fresh sage leaves in bacon drippings until crispy, 3-4 minutes. Set aside on plate with bacon strips. Reserve pan for Step 3.
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Prepare linguine according to package directions. Drain well, but do not rinse. Keep pasta warm.
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Wipe the skillet you used to cook bacon with a paper towel. Add butter. Cook gently over medium heat until the butter begins to melt. Once melted, reduce heat to medium-low and cook until brown and starts to foam, 5-6 minutes. Watch carefully and stir occasionally so butter does not burn.
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Add shallots and garlic to the browned butter and cook until fragrant, 2-3 minutes.
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Stir in pumpkin puree, pour heavy cream slowly and continue cooking until heated through, 2-3 minutes.
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Add linguine to the buttery pumpkin sauce. Toss to coat with sauce. Taste and season with black pepper, to taste. (Salt is not generally required due to the addition of bacon and parmesan in next step in case you feel the need add to taste).
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Break bacon into large pieces. Crumble sage.
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Twirl pasta onto plates and top with crispy bacon, sage, and parmesan shavings. Enjoy.
