Pappardelle with roasted butternut squash, sage and pecorino

Roast butternut squash in pasta might not be a classic (yet!), but we do not see why it should not be among the favourite pasta dishes in every family home. The two different textures, although both soft, complement each other brilliantly. The chunks of roast butternut squash add a bit of bite to the firm pappardelle pasta without squandering the soft and creamy texture. Roast butternut squash remains sweet, but also gets a pleasant, smokey flavour that pairs well with the natural sweetness and softness from the butternut squash and the pasta. In short: if you have not already tried it, try butternut squash in pasta straight away. It makes a fantastic, veggie meat-free meal for any occasion (though leave out the pecorino cheese if you’re looking to make it a vegan dish).

The combination of pasta and pumpkin or squash is a match made in heaven – all because of the textures and flavours. The sweet flavour of pumpkin succumbs well to herbs and spices, making it the perfect pairing for pasta dishes. Though butternut squash is a special type of pumpkin, a so-called winter squash, it has some resemblances in texture as well as flavour with regular pumpkins. So, if you do not have butternut squash available or if you want to try something else, try to make pasta with substitutes like white Casper, kabocha, or acorn pumpkins. Common to all types is the texture and the mild flavour that can easily be enhanced by herbs and spices. And all types work very well for any dish containing pasta with pumpkin.

Pappardelle is a pasta with long, broad, and flat ribbons that looks a bit like tagliatelle. The difference, however, is the width with pappardelle being much broader than tagliatelle. The large surface makes it perfect for more robust sauces and heavier autumn and winter dishes. And of course, what is more wintery than butternut squash? The softness and sweetness of roast butternut squash pairs perfectly with the more rough and intense pappardelle pasta that is ideal for being coated in all the great cheesy flavour.

The best thing about pasta recipes is that it is very easy to make your mark and shake things up a little bit. For example, with this butternut squash in pasta dish, you can add blue cheese to get a more sharp, savoury, and salty flavour – as a bonus, blue cheese goes very well with the sage as well. You can also make it heartier by adding sausage, fennel, and spring onions which all go very well with the sweet and soft roast butternut squash. To make it creamier, add a bit of double cream and maybe a bit more pecorino cheese on top.

Roasted butternut squash gets even more taste if you give them a bit more heat for the last 5 minutes or so. Remove the foil and turn the oven up slightly to give a bit more colour if you love the smokey roast butternut squash flavour. Butternut squash goes perfectly with autumn spices. Bake them with nutmeg, cloves, or cinnamon to get a more complex and sweet flavour before adding them to the sauce. Do not overcook the chunks of squash – especially if you give them a bit more heat to turn up the flavour. You should bake them until they just start turning soft and then only boil them in the sauce until they start to break down to avoid them getting all mushy. Experiment with herbs. You can easily try something other than sage leaves. For example, fresh thyme, basil, or rosemary.

First, you need to peel the butternut squash. Use a vegetable peeler starting from the stem working downwards and end with chopping off the stem and vertically slicing the squash in half before removing the seeds with a spoon. Cut it in slices, chunks, or leave it whole before roasting it in the oven sprinkled with oil, herbs, and spices.

Once you have cut it into chunks, it is quite easy to roast butternut squash in the oven. Drizzle the chunks with a good oil – for example a rich virgin olive oil – and sprinkle with your preferred dried or fresh herbs and spices. Roast the chunks in the oven for 30-35 minutes until golden and crisp.

The good thing is that roasted butternut squash does not take very long. It takes about 10 minutes to prepare the squash before putting it into the oven. Preheat the oven to 200C and roast the butternut squash for 30-35 minutes depending on the size of your slices or chunks – they might need only 25 minutes if they are small.

Pecorino is the perfect cheese for pastas and other hot, cheesy dishes. It is firm enough for you to be able to grate it finely without it clumping or breaking, but it is still rich enough to melt into any pasta dish. It is perfect with more simple pastas where its special taste from the sheep’s milk really gets to shine.