Roasted Honeynut Squash Pasta with Sausage and Chard
Honeynut squash is the star of this super tasty pasta dish with roasted honeynut squash used in the pasta sauce as well as roasted pieces stirred into the pasta.
Ingredients
- 1 pound of dried pasta 454 g - Tortiglioni, rigatoni, penne or other medium tube shaped pasta
- 3-4 tablespoons Kosher salt
- 3-4 pounds honey nut squash 5-6 honeynut squashes, peeled, de-seeded and cut into 1-2 inch pieces
- 1-2 tablespoons olive oil (for roasting the squash)
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 ½ pounds sweet Italian pork sausage could also use chicken sausage, ground pork, chicken or lamb
- 2 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 5-6 shallots peeled, cut in half and thinly sliced
- 3-4 large cloves of garlic peeled and minced
- ½ cup white wine 120 ml
- 1 quart reserved pasta water or 1 liter
- 1 cup broth chicken or vegetable (240 ml
- 1 teaspoon fish sauce
- ⅔ cup grated parmesan cheese divided
- Red pepper flakes
- 1-2 bunches of chard stems cut out, thinly sliced widthwise
Instructions
- Heat oven to 400 Deg F.
- Set out a stock pot or large pot for pasta and fill with 6-8 quarts of water and add the kosher salt. Bring to a boil while the squash is roasting.
- Place the cut squash pieces on a baking tray, drizzle with a one to two tablespoons olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Stir to coat the squash, roast for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft and starting to brown. Once browned and soft remove from the oven. Transfer half of the roasted squash to a blender.
- While the squash is roasting make the pasta. Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions for firm al-dente texture. Remove at least 4 cups ( 1 quart) pasta water, then drain the pasta. Rinse quickly in cool water to stop the cooking and set aside in a strainer to drain.
- Add 2 cups of the pasta water to the squash in the blender and blend until smooth. If the mixture is very thick add a little more water.
- Also while the squash is roasting, heat up a large sauté pan or dutch oven with a tablespoon of olive oil, then add the sausages. Break up into crumbles as you cook it. Once its fully cooked, about 10 minutes, remove the sausage to plate or bowl, return pan or dutch oven to heat, add the remaining tablespoon of olive oil, then add the shallots.
- Cook the shallots until caramelized, about 15-20 minutes.
- Add the garlic and stir for one minute. Add in the wine and cook until reduced, 2-3 more minutes.
- Add in the honeynut squash pasta sauce from the blender along with the cup of broth. Stir well. Add in the fish sauce and half of the parmesan cheese and stir. Next, add in the cooked, pasta and sausage until well covered with sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add in more of the reserved pasta water.
- Finally, add in the chard and stir gently until wilted, just a few minutes, then add in the rest of the roasted squash and stir again until everything is heated through. If the sauce is still to thick add in a little more broth or reserved pasta water.
- Divide amongst bowls and garnish with the remaining Parmesan and some red pepper flakes.
Notes
If it’s your first time making this recipe then make sure you read all of the information in the main post as it includes lots of additional tips, as well as the answers to some common questions.
If you have any further questions then do let me know in the comments and or email me [email protected] and I’ll do my best to help.
If you choose to make substitutions to the recipe that I have not tested yet please do so at your own risk. I cannot guarantee the same results if you change a lot of the ingredients or method. However, if any of your changes are successful I would love to hear about it and will add to my recipe notes for other readers to try as well.