BUTTERNUT SQUASH + SAGE BUTTER PASTA?

You had me at butter & pasta. Oh boy, this one is good. And this one is EASY! The hardest thing about it is peeling & cubing the butternut squash and even that was easy lol. When I tell you my family ate the entire pot of pasta…. There wasn’t even so much as 1 piece left. That’s when you know it’s a recipe you gotta keep! I found this recipe on Serious Eats, JACKPOT. It’s a great one. I tweaked a tiny bit- added white wine and a touch more lemon juice & butter. Recipe below!

INGREDIENTS:
2 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
1 LB butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (doesn’t have to be perfect)
Kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper
2.5 TBSP unsalted butter
1 small shallot, finely minced
1 handful fresh sage leaves, finely minced
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 TBSP juice from 1 lemon
1 LB small cupped, tubular, or ridged pasta
1 oz grated fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

DIRECTIONS:
Heat olive oil in a large stainless steel or cast-iron skillet over high heat until very lightly smoking. Add squash, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring and tossing occasionally, until well-browned and squash is tender, about 5 minutes. Add butter and shallots and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until butter is lightly browned and smells nutty, about 1 minute longer. Add sage and stir to combine (sage should crackle and let off a great aroma). Add in white wine. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, combine pasta with enough room temperature or hot water to cover by about 2 inches. Season with salt. Set over high heat and bring to a boil while stirring frequently. Cook, stirring frequently, until pasta is just shy of al dente, about 2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain pasta, reserving a couple cups of the starchy cooking liquid.

Add pasta to skillet with squash along with a splash of pasta water. Bring to a simmer over high heat and cook until the pasta is perfectly al dente, stirring and tossing constantly and adding a splash of water as needed to keep the sauce loose and shiny. Off heat, stir in Parmigiano-Reggiano. Season, add more cheese and serve!