Monday, November 22, 2010

Roasted Butternut Squash Penne with Bacon, Sage and Balsamic Vinegar



I'll be honest, when I found this recipe, all I could see in the title was BUTTERNUT SQUASH and BACON. Yeah, that's all it took, I'm not a difficult sell when it comes to those ingredients.

This is one of those dishes that just screams fall. With it's earthy sage, tangy and rich balsamic, and of course creamy butternut squash, you'll be savoring nothing but autumn goodness. I don't even need to mention the fact that it also has bacon in it too, do I?


Roasted Butternut Squash Penne with Bacon, Sage and Balsamic Vinegar
By Cuisine and Home

Ingredients

1 lb butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch cubes (might I suggest precut butternut squash at the store, it will save you loads of time, and perhaps a finger)
2 TB olive oil
2 TB balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper
8 oz thick-sliced bacon, diced
8 oz dry penne
2 tsp. minced garlic
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
2 TB thinly sliced fresh sage
Balsamic vinegar

Directions

Preheat oven to 450

Toss squash with oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Transfer to a baking sheet and roast until tender and beginning to caramelize, about 15 minutes (stir squash halfway through roasting); set aside.

Cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water according to package directions. Drain pasta reserving 1/2-1cup pasta water; set aside.

Cook bacon in a saute pan over medium heat until crisp, about 15 minutes. Transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate; discard drippings. Add garlic to pan, cook 1 minute.

Add roasted squash, pasta, and bacon to garlic, tossing to combine and heat through. Add pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, until it loosely coats pasta.

Off heat, toss pasta with Parmesan and sage. Garnish each serving with a drizzle of balsamic vinegar.

14 comments:

Unknown said...

Sounds divine, and I just love sage in pasta...recently discovered this. Lovely dish

Kimberly Peterson said...

I'm with you, didn't take too much to convince me that this dish is awesome!!

♥peachkins♥ said...

bacon and squash! I love the combination!have a great week..

Ingrid_3Bs said...

You're so funny. That happens to me too. One word in the recipe would jump out at me and then it was all over!

Happy Thanksgiving!
~ingrid

Pam said...

I love the flavors and textures in this pasta... it's beautiful too.

Sophia Lee said...

Hee hee hee, Teresa, you and I think (or eat) alike!! My eyes boggled at the words "butternut squash" and "bacon" too!! This pasta sounds too wonderful for words!

Judy said...

What a great combo. This looks so delicious.

Leslie said...

Amazing. Just amazing. All of the flavors sound perfect together

Reeni said...

I love the sweet and salty of the bacon and squash - so perfect together!

MaryMoh said...

Looks simple and delicious. I love butter squash. Just had butternut squash soup yesterday....delicious! Hope you have a wonderful day. MaryMoh at http://www.keeplearningkeepsmiling.com

Anonymous said...

WOW! That sounds better than a turkey dinner :-)

Have a great Thanksgiving

~Ron

Donna-FFW said...

Happy Thanksgiving to you!

Joanne said...

Butternut squash and bacon do it for me too. All the time, every time. This sounds amazing!

Happy Thanksgiving babe!

Shelby said...

3 magic words here for me - pasta, butternut and sage! YUMMY!