Vegan Butternut Squash Pasta Bake

5 from 7 votes

A creamy, delicious vegan butternut squash pasta bake for four, with the flavors of sage and nutmeg.

Prep Time20

Cook Time1 10

Total Time1 30

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Italian inspired

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: for two, nutmeg, sage, Vegan Butternut Squash Pasta Bake

Servings: servings

Calories: 416kcal

½ butternut squash (peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes, about 2 cups)
1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
½ pound rotini pasta (another tubular pasta like rigatoni or even macaroni would also be great here)
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
4 leaves sage (fresh, chopped, or 1 teaspoon dried sage)
½ cup raw cashews (soaked for 30 minutes and drained)
1 ½ cups water (for blending the sauce)
½ cup pasta cooking water (reserved before draining)

Mix the butternut squash with some ground black pepper and 1 teaspoon olive oil. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet and cook in a preheated, 400°F oven for 40 minutes.
Place a large pot of salted water on the stove. When it comes to a boil, add the pasta and cook until al dente, per manufacturer's instructions.
While the pasta is cooking, remove the squash to a blender along with the cashews, sage, salt to taste, nutmeg, and 1 ½ cups of water
Blend into a very smooth sauce.
In a large bowl, mix the cooked, drained pasta and the butternut squash sauce and ½ cup of the pasta cooking water.
Place the pasta in a 3-quart baking dish. Smooth into a flat layer.
Make the breadcrumb topping by mixing the breadcrumbs with herbs, olive oil, salt and ground black pepper.
Spread evenly on top of the pasta.
Place the pasta in a preheated 350°F oven and bake 30 minutes, or until the top is golden-brown.
Serve hot with a salad.

Makes 4 servings. Use a 3-quart baking dish. Cooking time includes 40 minutes roasting the squash and 30 minutes baking the assembled pasta. Soak the cashews and cook the pasta while the squash roasts; allow additional time if doing these steps separately. Nutrition uses whole wheat pasta, raw cashews and about 280 g squash, divided into 4 servings.