A Keeper

We find a lot of our new recipes online. Mostly through the New York Times because we subscribe to the paper and we get notifications from the Cooking section. We do own a lot of cookbooks as well but we use those when we are planning a dinner and have certain ingredients or dishes in mind. And the Joy of Cooking is always a great reference for something tried and true that you may need a refresher in.

But the ones we find in the Times just strike our fancy, or we may to just so happen to have the ingredients handy. This was true of a recipe we made about two weeks ago. It is called Butternut Squash Pasta with Bacon and Parmesan. Sounded good, looked easy and though we didn’t have a butternut squash we had a Jarrahdale squash. This is a large blue-gray squash which is a cross between a blue hubbard and a cinderella pumpkin. I didn’t know that when I bought it because I was just looking for decorations for Fall and found this on a big flatbed cart for sale with a load of other interesting pumpkins. I researched it later and Curt said, “why waste it, let’s cook it.”

The recipe turned out so well we dubbed it “a keeper” and it has gone into our recipe file.
So here is:

Butternut Squash (or Jarrahdale Squash) Pasta with Bacon and Parmesan (4-6 servings)

INGREDIENTS:
2 lbs butternut or any nice winter squash like Jarrahdale, peeled and cut into 3/4″ pieces, about 4 cups
3 Tbls Olive Oil
Pinch of Red pepper Flakes
Kosher salt and Black Pepper
1 medium Red Onion, cut into inch dice
5 slices Thick-cut Bacon
12 ounces twisty pasts like Campanelle or Cavatappi
3/4 C finely grated Parmesan (about 1.5 oz)
2 Tbls chopped fresh chives (we used green onions)
2 Tbls chopped fresh parsley

RECIPE: Set a rack in center of oven and heat to 375 degrees
Step 1:
Add the squash to a large baking sheet. Drizzle 2 Tbls olive oil over the top and season with red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Toss to combine, then spread the squash into an even layer and bake for 45 min. or until cooked through.

Step 2:
While the squash bakes fry the bacon till crispy. Remove, drain the bacon fat and add the red onion and 1 Tbls of olive oil and cook till soft. Meanwhile crumble the bacon.

Step 3:
Just before the squash is done, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta until al dente. While the pasta is cooking remove the squash from the oven. Reserve 1 cup pasta water, drain the pasta and return it to the pot to keep warm.

Step 4:
Add the squash, onions and 1/2 the bacon to the pasta. Add about 1/2 of the Parmesan and 1/2 C pasta water and stir everything to well combined. You want the squash to break down a bit and coat the pasta. Add more pasta water as necessary.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. Put into a serving bowl and top with chives, parsley and remaining bacon. Serve immediately.

Put remaining Parmesan on table for people to add to their servings.

Bon Appetit!