Wild Mushroom Pumpkin Stuffed Shells

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Does the perfect autumn pasta exist? I think so, and here it is. Wild mushroom pumpkin stuffed shells make for an amazing autumn-inspired meal. These scrumptious pasta shells are stuffed with savoury wild mushrooms, Gruyère cheese, and crunchy walnuts. Then they are baked in a delicious pumpkin sauce until the cheese gets nice and melty.

A dusting of freshly grated nutmeg perfectly compliments the umami and nutty flavours of this dish. Those deep pockets of stuffed pasta are divine to cut into. And it’s really quite a cinch to throw together.

For this recipe, you can use whichever edible wild mushrooms you prefer. I found these beautiful chanterelles and oyster mushrooms at the market.

We are going to stuff the shells with two kinds of cheeses. Ricotta – a soft and creamy Italian cheese that is excellent for stuffing pastas. And Gruyère – a sweet, nutty, and slightly salty cheese from Gruyères, Switzerland. It adds a nutty creaminess that is just perfect for these pumpkin stuffed shells.

Both of these cheeses are fairly easy to find. However, the best substitutes for Gruyère are Emmental, Beaufort, Jarlsberg, Raclette, or Comté. Comté is the French equivalent of Gruyère cheese. If you don’t have access to any of these, mozzarella cheese (though not quite the same) would also be delicious in this recipe.

how to make wild mushroom pumpkin stuffed shells

Preheat your oven to 350° and grease a 9″x13″ baking dish. Prep the vegetables by chopping the mushrooms, dicing the onion, and mincing the cloves of garlic. Also, grate the Gruyère cheese.

In a large pot, cook the jumbo pasta shells in salted water according to package directions. It doesn’t hurt to cook a couple extra in case some get damaged. Once cooked, drain the shells, toss them in some olive oil, and set them aside for now.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then sauté the diced onion until it softens.

Reduce the heat to medium-low. Stir in the mushrooms, garlic, walnut pieces, and red pepper flakes. Season with some salt and pepper, and sauté until the mushrooms are cooked and tender.

Add in the ricotta and half of the Gruyère cheese. Stir them into the mushroom mixture until the cheeses have melted. Taste test and season with additional salt and pepper as desired.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, milk, chicken stock, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and some freshly grated nutmeg. (You can replace the chicken stock with vegetable stock for a vegetarian option.) Take a quarter cup of this sauce and mix it into the mushroom-cheese mixture.

putting it together

Use half of the remaining pumpkin sauce to cover the bottom of the greased baking dish.

Stuff each of the shells and place them into the baking dish. I placed mine into two rows to support each other so that the shells wouldn’t tip over.

Spoon the remaining pumpkin sauce on top of the stuffed shells.

Now it is time to bake your wild mushroom pumpkin stuffed shells. Cover the baking dish with tin foil and bake for twenty minutes.

After twenty minutes, remove the tin foil cover. Use the other half of the Gruyère cheese and sprinkle it on top of the shells. Bake it, uncovered, for an additional ten minutes.

The cheese will melt and your scrumptious wild mushroom pumpkin stuffed shells will be ready to eat.

To serve, spoon some of the baked pumpkin sauce onto your serving plates. Place the shells on top, being careful to not mess up that beautiful melted cheese. Top them off with some freshly grated nutmeg.

This perfect autumn meal just needs the perfect autumn dessert. Try my popular and delicious pumpkin cookies with maple butter glaze. They do not disappoint!

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