Creamy Butternut Squash Linguini

This rich autumnal dish is great for some midweek comfort – velvety, creamy squash sauce is stirred through quick and easy fresh pasta and is made all in one pot making it a winning dish.

Serves 6

Preparation time: 5 minutes

Cooking time: 35 minutes

INGREDIENTS

• 750g butternut squash, diced
• 1 white onion, roughly chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled
• 2 sage leaves
• 5 thyme sprigs, leaves picked
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Sea salt and cracked black pepper
• 1 tablespoon oil
• 400ml vegetable stock, warm
• 180ml double cream
• 50g Parmesan cheese
• 500g fresh linguine
• Fresh parsley, roughly chopped to serve

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METHOD

Preheat the oven to 180°C/ 160°C Fan/ Gas Mark 4.

1. Place the diced butternut squash in the Signature Cast Iron Shallow Casserole along with the onion, garlic, sage, thyme and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper before drizzling over the oil.
2. Give all the ingredients a toss in the oil and then roast in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. After this time, turn the butternut squash and continue to roast for a further 10 minutes (you don’t want to colour the squash, rather just soften).
3. Once the squash is cooked through, remove from the oven and spoon into a blender. Add the stock, cream and Parmesan before blitzing into a smooth, silky sauce.
4. Return the sauce to the casserole and place over a medium to low heat. Add the fresh pasta and warm through until the pasta is cooked- this will take a 3-5 minutes. If the sauce is a little thick, add a splash of warm water.
5. Finish with the roughly chopped parsley.

Cook’s Notes

• Not a fan of pasta, why not try this dish with spiralized vegetables instead. This would work great with courgetti or even sweet potato pasta.
• Why not try this dish with another seasonal squash – look for squash that is naturally sweet in flavour and smooth in texture, you don’t want anything too fibrous.
• To make it a balanced plate, serve this dish alongside seasonal greens or a winter salad – bitter kale works perfectly with the rich, creamy sauce.
• Don’t have fresh pasta? Simply swap for cooked dried pasta