I love butternut squash.  It’s creamy, slightly sweet, and makes a perfect dairy-free and tomato-free base for pasta sauce.  I’ve been making this recipe from Oh She Glows for over a year now, but I wanted to adapt it to come up with something simpler yet still delicious.  I would probably enjoy puréed butternut squash on its own as a pasta sauce but I added a few more ingredients to give it more flavour.  And some greens because I couldn’t let butternut squash be the lone vegetable in this dish.  However, if you have picky eaters at home who will not eat the greens, feel free to omit them.  

Yield: approximately 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 340g package penne pasta 
• 1 medium-large butternut squash 
• 5 cups chopped spinach or kale
• 2 tbsp grass fed butter (or vegan alternative such as earth’s balance)
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tsp mustard powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 1/2 tsp sea salt 
• Pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 425*F.  Slice off the stem of the butternut squash as well as the opposite end and then cut in half lengthwise.  Scoop out seeds and place the 2 halves flesh side down in a casserole dish with an inch of water.  Place in oven for 30-40 mins until the skin starts to brown and wrinkle slightly.  

2.  Cook pasta according to package directions, then drain and set aside.  Tip: adding a little oil to the cooking water and then rinsing the cooked pasta immediately in a colander with cold water will keep it from getting mushy and sticking together.  

3.  Scoop out the butternut squash flesh, place in a blender and purée.  Set aside.

4.  Heat butter in the same pot you cooked the pasta in.  Add crushed garlic and sauté for 2-3 mins.  Add chopped spinach or kale and cook for 4-5 mins.  Stir in 2 cups of butternut squash purée, mustard powder, paprika, salt, and pepper.  Stir well, and cook for about 5 more mins to thicken the sauce.  

5.  Pour over pasta and top with grated Parmesan cheese if you like.  

Note: if you get more than 2 cups of butternut squash purée, you can refrigerate or freeze the extra for later.