As much as I love a tomato sauce, especially with bacon, I do enjoy a variety of them. In recent years I have found that butternut squash is a great substitute to tomatoes. I really enjoy roasting it in the oven and leaving it to cool before blending it with other ingredients. It makes a tasty change to tomatoes and with the price of tomatoes going up it’s also an affordable change too! We really enjoyed this dish and we hope you will too.
Do you like a change or are you team tomato? Let me know in the comments below and please don’t forget to like and follow me.
Equipment
- Sharp knife
- Chopping board
- Vegetable peeler
- Tablespoon
- Baking tray
- Blender
- Sheet tray
- Large saucepan
- Colander
Ingredients
- Onion x 1
- Butternut squash x 400g
- Olive Oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Chicken stock or bone broth x 300mls
- Pine nuts x 100g
- Dried mixed herbs
- Bacon x 8 rashers
- Pasta x 300g
- Preheat the oven to 180°C or gas mark 4.
- Cut the top and the bottom from the butternut squash.
- Peel the skin with the vegetable peeler.
- Next cut the squash lengthways and remove the seeds with the tablespoon.
- Now cut the squash into 2 centimetre pieces and put into the baking tray.
- Peel the onion and cut into 8 quarters.
- Put these into the baking tray.
- Drizzle oil over the top and add salt and pepper to your tastes.
- Toss all the ingredients together.
- Once the oven has preheated put the baking tray in and roast the vegetables for 30 – 40 minutes.
- When the vegetables are golden brown, remove from the oven and leave to cool.
- Add the chicken stock or bone broth to the bottom of the blender, the pine nuts, dried mixed herbs and then put in the cooled vegetables.
- Blend all of these ingredients together.
- Once these ingredients are smooth, set them aside.
- Meanwhile turn the grill onto high and leave to heat.
- Put the bacon onto the sheet tray.
- Once the grill is hot put the tray under and cook the bacon.
- Once the fat starts to turn golden brown turn the bacon over.
- Cook the other side until the fat turns golden brown.
- Remove from the grill and leave to cool down.
- Put the saucepan onto a high heat and add water to the pan.
- Bring to the boil and cook the pasta as per the packet instructions.
- While the pasta is cooking slice the cook bacon.
- When the pasta has cooked drain through the colander and set to one side.
- Add the sauce to the large saucepan and heat through.
- Then add in the cooked pasta and bacon.
- Stir these ingredients together.
- Serve with a salad or cooked green vegetable and enjoy.
Roasted Butternut Squash and Bacon Pasta was a success in our house. My husband Howard, son Ted and I loved this meal. To be honest, I think Howard and Ted liked the bacon the most. I loved the creamy sauce that wrapped everything together. The sauce can be made in advance of a meal and then frozen for another occasion. You could also make extra of the sauce and freeze it too. Then this meal becomes even quicker. However you decide to eat this dish, as always, please enjoy. Thank you xxx
Googies Kitchen Life 