Creamy Baked Pasta with Butternut Squash Ricotta Sauce
The most comforting fall and winter pasta full of Mediterranean flavors: Butternut squash comes together with ricotta cheese to make a delicious creamy sauce in this delicious pasta dish.
Servings 2
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil plus more for greasing baking dish
- 2 cloves of garlic quartered
- 1 ⅓ lb. (600 g) butternut squash peeled and cut in 1 inch (2 cm) cubes
- 8 oz (250 g) ricotta cheese
- 6 oz (160 g) penne or rigatoni
- ⅓ cup grated parmesan or pecorino (can also include shavings)
- coarse sea salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a large pan add 1 tbsp olive oil and sauté the garlic for a minute. Add the chopped butternut squash, a pinch of salt, cover and continue heating on low heat until soft and pierceable with a fork, 15-20 minutes.
- Empty the squash and garlic in a bowl and smash with a fork,add the ricotta, a pinch of salt and mix well. Place back in the pan.
- In the meantime, boil the pasta al dente, save some of the pasta water.
- Preheat oven at 400 F (200 C) and grease a baking dish with olive oil.
- Once pasta is ready, empty the pasta in the squash-ricotta mixture with about 2-3 tablespoons pasta water and heat for a few minutes stirring well. Sprinkle with half of the grated cheese or shavings. Add fresh ground pepper and another pinch of salt for taste and mix again.
- Empty the pasta- butternut squash mix in the baking dish. Sprinkle with the rest of the cheese and bake for 10 minutes.
- Serve immediately with some fresh ground pepper.
Notes
- You can also skip the baking step and serve as is, but it won’t have that crunch on the surface.
- To store: Cover and store in the refrigerator for 2 days.