Thanksgiving is on its way and I’m experimenting with turkey. Turkey has never really been one of my favorite meats, but now that I’m getting older, it has become necessary to add leaner meats to my diet, and explore recipes that work for me. Hence, butternut squash pasta with turkey. A lovely dish, full of fall flavors.
Butternut squash pasta with turkey is so yummy. A single serving for dinner is quite filing, when I had the leftovers for lunch, I split the serving in half.
This dish is cheap to create. Every ingredient is likely to be less than $6.00, and many ingredients will have plenty left over for other meals. Do I hear BONUS?!
If you are single and living alone, butternut squash pasta with turkey is the kind of meal that you can make a batch of and have one serving for dinner and split the other servings for lunch during the week. I created one meal portions with my leftovers and placed them in the fridge. Freezing is an option also, but for no more than one month.
Celebrating Thanksgiving alone and don’t want to tackle a big bird? This dish is ideal. Don’t worry, you’ll still have room for some pumpkin pie.
Butternut squash pasta with turkey would make for a nice brunch dish during the run up to, or just after Thanksgiving. Perhaps someone in your family is hosting the big Thanksgiving meal, but you have guests visiting around the holiday. Well, pull out this recipe, and give them something on theme and tasty to boot!
Whenever you decide to make this dish you will enjoy it, and that’s what matters most.
Butternut Squash Pasta with Turkey
Ingredients
- 2 cups butternut squash 1" cubes
- 3 tsp olive oil
- 2 tsp garlic minced
- 1/4 tsp fennel
- 2 1/2 tbsp fresh sage chopped
- 1 lb ground turkey
- 1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 cups unsalted chicken stock
- 2 tbsp heavy cream
- 1/4 cup parmesan shredded
- 4 cups mezzi rigatoni
Equipment & Utensils
- Small saucepan with cover
- Large sauté pan with cover
- Immersion/hand blender
- Medium saucepan
Instructions
- Place butternut squash in saucepan, cover with water and heat on high until water begins to bubble.
- Lower heat to medium and cook butternut squash until you can easily pierce with a fork.
- Remove from heat, drain water and set aside. You will need the pan later to create sauce
- Add 2 tsp of oil to sauté pan on medium then add 1 tsp garlic, 1 tbsp sage and fennel until flavors begin to release.
- Add ground turkey and quickly but carefully break up the turkey into small pieces.
- Continue to sauté turkey until it has become very small bite-size pieces and any fluid from the turkey has dried out.
- Add rest of sage and then 1/2 tsp salt and the pepper.
- Mix thoroughly, then taste to make sure the balance of ingredients work for you.
- If need be, add some more of what your tastebuds feel is necessary.
- Cover to keep warm and set aside.
- In small saucepan add butter and 1 tsp of oil then add 1 tsp garlic.
- Sauté garlic for a few seconds then add cooked butternut squash and 1/2 tsp salt.
- Combine ingredients in pan then add chicken stock and cream, combine again.
- With an immersion or hand blender, blend ingredients until smooth.
- Add parmesan and combine.
- You should arrive at a slightly thick, smooth sauce. Cover to keep warm and set aside.
- Cook pasta with a little salt for approx. 7-8 minutes, then drain thoroughly.
- Add three cups of butternut squash sauce to pasta and combine.
- Divide pasta into three bowls, then top with turkey, drizzle with 1 tbsp of butternut sauce and serve with a sprig of sage.
