Butternut Squash Pasta

I know this blog has been neglected lately, but I have been knee (and even waist) deep in house projects. I will be back next week with some wonderful Thanksgiving recipes. In the mean time, the wonderful Mrs. W has agreed to do a guest post. Thanks, Mrs. W!

While Mrs. D is busy painting and decorating her living room (it’s looking great!), I’m filling in for her with a guest post!

This time of year, I am obsessed with butternut squash and pumpkin. I’ll consume pretty much anything with “pumpkin” in the name: pumpkin coffee, pumpkin muffins/cake/bread/cookies/soup/beer/yougetthepicture. I would consider getting help for this addiction (“Hi, I’m Mrs. W, and I’m a pumpkinholic”), but then I think about how much fiber I’m getting and think, Doesn’t everyone always say we need more fiber in our diets? I’m so healthy! And down the hatch go five pumpkin chocolate chip cupcakes with cream cheese frosting, chased by a pumpkin beer.

So anyway, when I saw a recipe for Pumpkin Sage Pasta over at Nat Nests, I knew I had to try it. But I happened to have leftover mashed butternut squash* in the fridge, so I swapped it for the pumpkin and made a few more tweaks to my taste, et voila! Delicious (and so fiber-full)!

I have now tried it with the pumpkin as well, and I happen to like the squash version better, because if I have one vice it’s my sweet tooth. The original pumpkin recipe is more savory. Both are autumnal, cozy-fleece-slippers comfort food, and taste great leftover, too.

Butternut Squash Pasta

Approx. 2 cups whole-wheat pasta (I used rotini)
1 Tbsp. olive oil
3 Tbsp. butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 leaves fresh sage, chopped (I used a lot more because it’s mild and I love sage)
1 cup butternut squash, pureed or mashed*
1 cup reserved pasta water
Salt and pepper to taste
Red pepper flakes to taste
Parmesan cheese to taste

1. Cook pasta according to package directions and drain, reserving 1 cup pasta water.
2. Saute garlic and sage in olive oil and butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat.
3. Add pumpkin and pasta water.
4. Whisk together until combined. Add more pasta water if sauce is too thick, more squash if too thin.
5. Season with salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste.
6. Pour sauce over drained cooked pasta and stir to combine.
7. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

*Mrs. W’s Sweet Butternut Squash

1. Cut butternut squash in half lengthwise, and scoop out seeds.
2. Place squash halves on foil-lined cookie sheet, cut side up.
3. Roast at 400 degrees for 45-60 minutes.
4. Allow to cool slightly.
5. Scoop out squash into a mixing bowl, and mash or puree the squash (you can mash by hand with a potato masher, or use an immersion blender if you want smoother squash).
6. Mix in a tablespoon of butter, a spoonful of brown sugar, a dash of cinnamon (or pumpkin pie spice if you have it), a pinch of salt, and a teaspoon of maple syrup.