Butternut Squash & Goat Cheese Pasta

Is anyone as obsessed with goat cheese lately as I am? I just can’t get enough, and the reality is the fat and calorie content isn’t as bad as other cheeses. This recipe is one I can’t wait to make every fall and since I have been on my goat cheese addiction lately I decided to pull it back out this winter. It’s a yummy comforting dish that is vegetarian friendly too!

Butternut Squash & Goat Cheese Pasta

1 lb butternut squash

1 onion

3 C penne pasta

4 oz goat cheese

3/4 C chopped walnuts

1/2 C fresh basil

1/4 C parmesan

  By the way I found this chopped and peeled butternut squash at Trader Joe’s and almost did a happy dance in the store. It was a little more expensive then buying a whole squash, but the time and ease I saved not having to peel and chop the squash (while almost cutting off  a finger or two) was defiantly worth the extra couple of bucks. However, if I do get a fresh butternut squash from the farm (back home) again this fall I will gladly peel and chop it!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Chop the squash into 1/2  inch pieces (don’t worry you don’t need to get a out a ruler, anything under an inch is fine). Chop the onion as well (I of course used my handy dandy chopper once again). Place on a cookie sheet and top with about 2 T of EVOO, salt and pepper, and mix up with your hands to make sure everything is coated.

Roast for about 35 minutes or until the veggies start to get crispy.

In the meantime get a large pot of water boiling and add the penne, cook for about 8 minutes (al dente) reserve 1 C of pasta water before draining . Toast the walnuts (to do this just place them in a pan on the stove and roast for about 5 minutes on medium heat). Dice the basil (aka chiffonade).

Mix the pasta, reserved pasta water, parmesan, and goat cheese together in a serving bowl until the  goat cheese is melted and becomes the sauce. Add the butternut squash and onion. Lastly mix in the walnuts and basil.

A little birdie mentioned they wanted me to start posting calorie content for my posts so I will try to start adding that.

Servings 4 (large portions)

Calories per serving 517

Adapted from Giada De Laurentils recipe