What's Wrong With This Picture?

When it started to feel like autumn last week, I was thinking of apples and squash.  Now that's officially October, my thoughts are turning to pumpkins.  I just love all the different sizes and shapes and colors in big baskets at grocery stores this time of year.  Have you ever gone to an honest-to-goodness pumpkin patch and picked your own?  What a hoot!  But I digress.  I love the look of pumpkins and cleverly carved jack-o-lanterns for Halloween, but I most definitely do NOT like to eat pumpkin.  Not fresh, not out of a can, not in a pie, not in a cheesecake, no way, no thank you, no pumpkin for me.  Until I saw this recipe:  Pumpkin Bacon Macaroni and Cheese.  If you know me, you know that has my name all over it, except for the pumpkin.  But I am nothing if not adventurous, so I'm going to give this bad boy a try.  If you're an adventurer too, here goes:

PUMPKIN BACON MACARONI AND CHEESE

(With thanks to Lauren; serves 6.)

1 pound of short pasta, such as rotini

8 slices of bacon

1 cup of diced onion

1 clove of garlic, minced

1 cup of canned pumpkin (without pumpkin pie spices added)

1/4 tsp. of thyme

1/8 tsp. of cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

Salt and pepper to taste

1 jar of prepared Alfredo-style sauce

3/4 cup of milk

1/2 pound of grated fontina cheese

1/3 pound of grated sharp cheddar cheese

Crushed Ruffles potato chips for garnish (optional)

Cook pasta to al dente, according to package directions, then drain.  Return same pot to stove and cook bacon until crispy, then drain on paper towels. When cool, chop bacon into small pieces.  In remaining bacon grease, saute onions and garlic.  Stir in pumpkin, spices, and Alfredo sauce.  Pour milk into empty sauce jar, replace lid, and shake vigorously, then add the milk to the pot.  Add the cheeses and stir while melting.  Stir in the pasta and half the bacon.  Spoon into serving dishes and top with remaining crumbled bacon and potato chips (if desired, and who wouldn't desire THAT?).  Eat it all up.

Now, honestly, with all that other glorious stuff in there, chances are you wouldn't even notice the pumpkin.  It might just add additional creaminess, which we would be willing to taste test, right?  Okay, let's try this wacky wonder.  You first.