Butternut Squash, Sausage and Spinach Pasta Toss
Here's a super tasty weeknight pasta full of delicious fall flavors - butternut squash, sage, spinach and sausage. It's quick and easy - you just toss it all together. The ricotta nestled in at the end gives a delicious creamy finish to a hearty winter pasta.
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Butternut Squash, Sausage & Spinach Pasta Toss
- Prep Time: 15 m
- Cook Time: 20 m
- Total Time: 35 m
- Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 1 pound dried rotini pasta
- 1 pound sweet Italian sausage casings removed
- ½ Vidalia onion diced
- 2 cups butternut squash diced
- 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
- 1 cup chicken stock
- 1½ cups ricotta cheese
- salt and fresh ground black pepper
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh sage
- 4 cups fresh baby spinach
Instructions
- Bring a large stockpot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to package directions until it is just tender. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining the pasta.
- Pre-heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up into bite-sized chunks, until it is no longer pink. Remove the cooked sausage from the pan with a slotted spoon and set it aside. Add the onion and butternut squash to the pan and stir to coat with the fat from the sausage. Add the dried sage. Sauté for a few minutes to brown the vegetables. Add the chicken stock and deglaze the pan, scraping up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan. Bring the liquid to a simmer, cover and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, until the squash is soft.
- While the pasta and squash are cooking, mix the ricotta cheese with the fresh sage, salt and freshly ground black pepper in a bowl and set it aside.
- Return the cooked sausage to the pan and add the baby spinach. Add the hot pasta to the pan on top of the spinach and toss to combine until the spinach has wilted. Add ½ cup of the reserved pasta water to loosen the pasta, adding more if necessary. Season to taste with salt and fresh ground black pepper. Dollop the seasoned ricotta cheese into the pasta, nestling it into the pasta to start to warm and melt. Transfer to a serving dish and garnish with a little more fresh sage if desired. Serve immediately.
Nutrition Facts
Butternut Squash, Sausage & Spinach Pasta Toss
Amount Per Serving
Calories 701
Calories from Fat 306
% Daily Value*
Fat 34g52%
Saturated Fat 14g70%
Cholesterol 90mg30%
Sodium 686mg29%
Potassium 784mg22%
Carbohydrates 69g23%
Fiber 4g16%
Sugar 5g6%
Protein 30g60%
Vitamin A 7110IU142%
Vitamin C 18.2mg22%
Calcium 218mg22%
Iron 3.4mg19%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
This is an easy recipe to pull together, but we did not feel that the squash belonged in the dish. While eating, we both pulled the squash to the side and ate as a side to the main. I think it was a textural thing, the flavors were good.
I made this recipe substituting some preferred veggies and cheese: rainbow carrots for the butternut squash and mascarpone cheese for the ricotta. Everything else in the recipe the same and Omg… what a delicious meal. Thank you bluejean chef for sharing your expertise.