Penne with Squash & Goat Cheese

Well now that Thanksgiving is over, it’s back to classes for three weeks for us students and for everyone else, it’s back to work. I am going to be swarmed with work for these next few weeks, but after that, I will be finished with school and looking for a job!!

By now I’m sure many of you have had enough of turkey, mashed potatoes, and pie. So I’m going to share with you a recipe that is much different from the food you had on Thanksgiving. This recipe is perfect and you must make it, stat. I would not change a single thing. Thank you Giada De Laurentiis for such a delicious recipe. It’s hard not to love this recipe as it includes three of my favorite ingredients…pasta, squash, and goat cheese. The goat cheese is fantastic in this dish as it lightly coats the penne to make a light creamy sauce. Be sure to reserve the cooking water because you will definitely need it to create a sauce for your pasta. Trust me, you will love this recipe. It has quickly become one of my favorite pasta dishes. Enjoy!

Penne with Squash & Goat Cheese

Serves 4-6.

Ingredients

1 (2-pound) butternut or kombucha squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 3/4-inch cubes (I used Kombucha squash)
1 onion, diced into 1/2-inch pieces
Olive oil, for drizzling
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound penne pasta
1 cup (8 ounces) goat cheese, crumbled
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, toasted (see Note)
1 packed cup chopped fresh basil leaves
1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan

Directions

Put an oven rack in the upper third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
Spray a baking sheet, liberally, with cooking spray. Set aside.
Mix the squash and onion together and arrange in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper, to taste.
Bake for to 40 to 45 minutes until the vegetables are golden and cooked through. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool slightly.
While the squash mixture is cooling, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes.
Drain and reserve about 2 cups of the pasta water.
Put the pasta, goat cheese and 1 cup of pasta water in a large serving bowl. Toss until the cheese has melted and forms a creamy sauce.
Add the squash and onion mixture, the walnuts and the basil.
Toss well and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with Parmesan and serve.