Butternut squash baked penne with rosemary and sage crumb •
Autumn is almost here and this is the perfect cosy recipe to welcome in the new season! Butternut squash, creamy cheese, and fresh herbs come together in this comforting dish that you’ll want to keep in your cold weather recipe rotation.
Ingredients
For the pasta
- 800 grams butternut squash, cut into chunks
- 500 grams penne or other tube shaped pasta
For the sauce
- 2/3 butternut squash chunks
- 90 grams butter
- 60 grams plain flour
- 1400 ml whole milk
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 175 grams cheddar, grated
- 175 grams gouda, grated
- salt & pepper
For the topping
- 100 grams bread crumbs (I use panko)
- Handful of sage and rosemary, about 7g in total and finely chopped
- 40 grams parmesan or vegetarian alternative, finely grated
- 90 grams salted butter, melted
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 220c/200 fan and lay the squash chunks on a lined baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and lightly season with salt and pepper before cooking for 20-25 mins until tender and brown around the edges.
- Blend 2/3 of the squash chunks in a food processor along with the remaining sauce ingredients, and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook your pasta until just shy of al dente and set aside to drain. You can make your sauce while the pasta cooks.
- Melt the butter in a large saucepan. Add the flour and stir for one minute. Slowly add in your milk, whisking consistently, until the roux thickens. Reduce the heat and whisk in the cheese, onion powder, garlic powder, nutmeg, and Dijon. Stir in the butternut squash purée until combined and season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the pasta and remaining butternut squash chunks to your sauce pan and mix until combined. If your pan is too small, you can mix the ingredients in a large baking dish too.
- Mix together the chopped sage, rosemary, bread crumbs, and melted butter together in a small bowl and scatter over the top of the pasta.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until breadcrumbs are golden.