best butternut squash sauce over pasta
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We've had many a bland butternut squash pasta sauce before but perusing recipes on the web finally revealed the secret to a tasty one: tangy dairy! Instead of using cream, milk or similar fresh dairy, use a tangy, cultured one like Greek yogurt, sour cream, buttermilk or the like. Ricotta lacks the necessary tang. This recipe goes together quickly but requires a couple of previously prepared ingredients: cooked butternut squash and roasted red pepper. Plan ahead. The quantities given are suggestive; adjust & season to your taste. The cheese alone made it salty enough for us.
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yield
2 large entree servings
prep time
15 Min
cook time
30 Min
method
Stove Top
Ingredients For best butternut squash sauce over pasta
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6 ozdry pasta, e.g. rigatoni
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4 ozloose sausage
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1 mdshallot, minced
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2 clovegarlic, minced
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200 gbutternut squash, cooked & mashed
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1/4 cgreek yogurt, sour cream, or other tangy cultured dairy
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1 1/2 cpasta water (you may not need it all)
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1 cparsley, minced
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1 mdred bell pepper, roasted, peeled & diced
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2 ozpecorino romano, finely grated
How To Make best butternut squash sauce over pasta
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1Start to cook the pasta so it will be ready to add to the sauce when assembled. The recipe will need pasta water toward the end so remember to reserve about 1 1/2 cups of it.
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2Saute and crumble the sausage in a medium cast iron skillet or saute pan. The pan should be big enough to hold all the ingredients, including the pasta, at the end.
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3As the sausage finishes cooking, drain off some of the rendered fat, if needed, and add the minced shallot and garlic. Saute slowly so as not to scorch the vegetables.
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4Stir together the mashed squash and the yogurt (sour cream, or other). Add to the sausage and heat through, making sure the temperature is sufficiently low so as not to scorch the squash.
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5Add pasta water as needed to keep the sauce loose but not watery. Add the parsley and red pepper. Heat through.
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6Add the drained pasta and more pasta water if needed. Stir to thoroughly coat the pasta.
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7While still stirring, slowly add the grated Romano cheese, carefully distributing the cheese throughout. Serve immediately.
- Last Step: Don't forget to share! Make all your friends drool by posting a picture of your finished recipe on your favorite social network. And don't forget to tag Just A Pinch and include #justapinchrecipes so we can see it too!
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