I know what you were thinking just now. I’ve got that thing, telepathy. I’m one of the X-Men.
OK, not really, but I bet you were thinking, “Is that nacho cheese on that pasta?” This is only for those folks who didn’t read the title (what a spoiler that is, right?).
I am not above nacho cheese pasta. I’ve never tried that, but I’ve probably been pretty close with boxed macaroni before. But this is not nacho cheese pasta. It’s butternut squash pasta. Because it’s THAT time of year.
And I’ve got to say, this is one of the most creamy pasta sauces you can make. So it’s sort of amazing that it’s mostly vegetables. There’s still cream and cheese in it, don’t get me wrong. I didn’t say this is health food. But it’s certainly packed with more nutrition than boxed macaroni and cheese.Â
Butternut Squash Pasta, serves 3-4.Â
16 oz. pasta (I used rigatoni)
16 oz. butternut squash
1 tablespoon butter
5 sage leaves
1 cup cream
1 yolk
1/2 cup parmesan cheese
nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste
First we need to peel and cook the butternut squash. There are a few different ways to do this. I decided to use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin. Then I cut the meat of the squash into cubes. I placed the squash, butter, and sage leaves in a slow cooker and cooked on low for two hours.
Blend the squash and juices together until smooth. Remove the sage leaves before blending.Â
In a sauce pan, combine the squash, cream, a little nutmeg, and black pepper. Start moderate to light with the seasoning as you can always add more later. Cook over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in the egg yolk and continue to cook. Add in the parmesan cheese, stir, and continue to cook until smooth. Taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.Â
While cooking the sauce, cook the pasta according to the directions. Strain and add the pasta to the sauce and stir to combine.
Top with a little more cheese and black pepper. Make this sometime this week. It’s just so good! xo. Emma
Credits // Author and Photography: Emma Chapman. Photos edited with A Beautiful Mess actions.
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Ingredients
- 16 oz. pasta (I used rigatoni)
- 16 oz. butternut squash
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 5 sage leaves
- 1 cup cream
- 1 yolk
- ½ cup parmesan cheese
- nutmeg (salt and pepper to taste)
Instructions
- First we need to peel and cook the butternut squash. There are a few different ways to do this. I decided to use a vegetable peeler to remove the skin. Then I cut the meat of the squash into cubes. I placed the squash, butter, and sage leaves in a slow cooker and cooked on low for two hours.
- Blend the squash and juices together until smooth. Remove the sage leaves before blending.
- In a sauce pan, combine the squash, cream, a little nutmeg, and black pepper. Start moderate to light with the seasoning as you can always add more later. Cook over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in the egg yolk and continue to cook. Add in the parmesan cheese, stir, and continue to cook until smooth. Taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.
- While cooking the sauce, cook the pasta according to the directions. Strain and add the pasta to the sauce and stir to combine. Top with a little more cheese and black pepper.
This so good! We had it two nights in a row and my family raved about it both nights. My husband thinks is the best pasta we’ve had in a while!
What’s a good non dairy substitute for the cream?
I was also thinking that veggies would sound great. Any tips for choosing the right ones?
This looks so good! I want this for dinner tomorrow 🙂
Hey Emma!
I’ve been following the blog for about three years now, but I haven’t gotten the chance to fulfill any of the amazing things you folks post because undergrad life (and now grad life!) just didn’t allow me.
I did make this, though! And I wanted to express a HUGE T H A N K Y O U! This recipe was easy, cheap, and amazing! I just moved into my apartment, and I don’t have a lot of utensils just yet, but it is totally easy to make even without a blender.
You’re great. Thanks for posting things that the “average” human can accomplish.
Good lord that looks amazing.
Looks so yummy and perfect dinner for a day spent shoveling the driveway when the snow comes! Can’t wait to try this
I made this dish yesterday, we just happened to have half a butternut in the fridge! I cooked my butternut with the butter and herbs in a wok with the lid on, it took about 20 minutes. I also added fried bacon, mushrooms and prawns. It was lovely so thanks for sharing. I have some recipes on my own blog at www.lifeofpottering.co.uk if anyone is interested. 🙂
Perfect comfort food for the rainy days coming here in France ^^
Charline
Get a Magic Bullet. It’s not too expensive and it’s small and so convenient. I used mine all the time for smoothies and quick cooking jobs.
Yum x 1,000,000!!!
mmm, this sounds so good!
xxoo,
nikki
www.dream-in-neon.com
YUM – this looks AMAZING!!!
Can’t wait to try 🙂 If it’s half as good as the baked apple recipe from a few weeks ago, well then my tastebuds are in for a treat!
Alex from www.yyztobos.com
More than a full size blender you could get a small hand mixer for $40 or less. It doesn’t take much space and quite frankly, it does a pretty good job at blending pretty much anything when it’s cooked well enough (don’t use it for mashed potatos though….it will turn them into glue for some reason). I do everything with my super old hand mixer (seriously I inherited it from my Grand-father and it’s probably as old as me (28) but boy is it efficient) from soup (potage) to smoothies. I’m sure it would be fantastic for a dorm. http://www.walmart.ca/en/ip/oster-hand-blender-with-blending-cup/6000016935648
That looks freaking delish! Perfect for autumn too when you’re in need of some carby comfort
This is amazing, I actually served it to my little sister and told her it was macaroni & cheese – she totally believed it and didn’t even know she was eating something healthy!!
Mmmm we just served butternut squash pasta at our house last week! My recipe is similar to yours except I skipped the cream and the egg yolk and added just a tablespoon or two of low fat cream cheese to the butternut squash for creaminess. I also fried up some turkey bacon and crumbled that into the pasta for a bit of salt and flavor.
Thanks for sharing!
xo Rachel
Made this over the weekend — AMAZING!!! I added a couple dashes of cinnamon. It was sooooo gooooood. Thank you for giving me a new butternut squash recipe to play with. Can’t wait to make it again!
No slow-cooker at my house. Is there another way I can cook the squash? Maybe in the oven on low heat, approx. 300F for an hour or so until soft?
Yes! Butternut squash on pasta is so delicious, but take it up a notch with butternut squash mac & cheese. You won’t be disappointed!