Something magical happens to pasta when you combine spaghetti with a creamy butternut sauce made with leeks, sage, garlic and Parmigiano Reggiano. You’ll swear this is full of cream and butter, but it’s not!
Spaghetti with Butternut Parmesan Sauce
This spaghetti with creamy, Butternut Squash Parmesan Sauce is super easy to make with only a few ingredients. It feels like it’s super decadent but it’s healthy and light. Perfect for Meatless Mondays, or any night of the week. You may also like this spicier Butternut Pasta with Spicy Sausage and Spinach version. And for a pasta dish made with pumpkin puree, try this Cheesy Baked Pumpkin Pasta.
This recipe started out as a mistake, a butternut squash puree that was far too thin and liquidy. A very HAPPY mistake! Don’t you love when that happens? I decided to make it into a pasta sauce and added a ton of good quality cheese (don’t use the cheap stuff), fresh sage, garlic and leeks which are milder than onions and quite delicious. The sauce turned out savory, creamy and delicious. The best part? Tommy LOVED it and he’s not always easy to please.
Helpful Tips
- You can double the sauce and freeze the rest. Let it cool and transfer to freezer safe containers. I love these Souper Cubes (affil link) for freezing soups and sauces in portions! Freeze for up to 3 months.
- To speed this up, you can buy pre-cut and peeled butternut squash instead of doing it yourself. Here’s an easy tip for cutting and peeling butternut squash yourself.
- I used spaghetti here, but any pasta shape would work. Whole wheat of gluten-free pasta would also be great!
More Pasta Recipes You Will Love
- Brussels Sprouts Carbonara
- Lasagna Rolls
- Macaroni and Cheese Soup
- Baked Broccoli Mac and Cheese
- One Pot Spaghetti Meat and Sauce
Spaghetti with Butternut Leek Parmesan Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 lb butternut squash, peeled and diced
- 1 tbsp light butter
- 8 oz spaghetti of your choice, use brown rice pasta for gluten-free
- 1 cup large leek (white part only)
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1/4 cup fresh shaved parmesan cheese
- 4 sage leaves, sliced thin
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
- Add butternut squash and cook until soft.
- Remove squash with a slotted spoon and place in a blender, blend until smooth.
- Add pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions for al dente, reserving 1 cup of the pasta water before draining.
- Meanwhile, in a large deep non-stick skillet, melt the butter, sauté the leeks and garlic over medium-low heat until soft and golden, about 5 - 6 minutes.
- Add pureed butternut squash, season with with salt and fresh cracked pepper and add a little of the reserved pasta water to thin out to your liking.
- Stir in parmesan cheese and sage and mix in pasta until well coated.
- Serve with additional parmesan cheese on the side.
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Photo credit: Erin Alvarez
