Pasta with Smoky Pumpkin Cream Sauce

"I am not looking to ban gas stoves," stated Consumer Product Safety Commission chair Alexander Hoehn-Saric last week. Ah, stoves. Who knew something so mundane could inspire such breathless political hysteria that the CPSC chair was compelled to comment? It is a depressing sign of the times.

By now you have probably already learned that not only does cooking on a gas stove cause air indoor air pollution, but gas stoves can be a source of methane emissions even when they're turned off, so they're contributing to climate change.

"Huh, that's a problem," you're probably thinking, and you're right. But that's not what most people are upset about! The hand-wringers are those who think the government is going to take their gas stoves away.

Imagine if those people got as upset about the climate crisis as they did about the idea of cooking on an electric range, or if they protested genuine threats to democracy and obstacles to equality instead of imaginary threats of government bans on household appliances. That's the world I want to live in.

Actually, the world I want to live in doesn't have a climate crisis at all, but meanwhile here I am, keeping my meat consumption to a minimum because animal agriculture is a major chunk of the greenhouse gas emissions that are causing global warming. I see it as an ethical imperative to take personal responsibility for addressing that problem, so dishes like "Pasta with Smoky Pumpkin Cream Sauce" (Epicurious) are a typical meal choice for me and my backup dancers. 

The recipe is dead easy, and the results are good. I followed one commenter's suggestion to substitute coconut milk for the cream, and was pleased with the result. That also made the dish vegan, another score for Planet Earth. And I tossed in a liberal sprinkle of onion powder in the recipe's Step 2, to boost the flavor. Do it. You won't be sorry.

I cooked it on my gas stove! Had I known about the climate hazards before we purchased the oven, several years ago, electric would have been my choice. But like most people, I'm not going to run out and replace this big-ticket item for that reason alone. I will, however, ask a plumber to check the fittings for leaks next time we need a plumber for some other reason. And for the health concerns, I will run the range hood fan every time I cook.

Back to the CPSC chair: Once upon a time, I used to work with Alex Hoehn-Saric. Rest assured that he is a lovely person, dazzlingly smart, and not at all inclined to seize anyone's appliances.

I have fond memories of working with my fellow Senate staffers Laurie and Alex, long ago and far away