Butternut Squash Sausage & Mushroom Pasta

The sauce for this pasta dish is made with butternut squash and parmesan cheese. Mix it with your favorite pasta, sausage and spinach and you have a deliciously rich dish.

📝 Ingredients

• 1.22 lb Turkey Sausage (I used Sweet Italian)
• 1 lb butternut squash (peeled and diced)
• 1 T butter
• 14.5 oz whole wheat Penne pasta (or your favorite)
• 1 T olive oil
• 8 oz. sliced baby bella mushrooms
• 1/4 c shallots (diced)
• 3 cloves of garlic (diced)
• 2 c baby spinach (roughly chopped)
• 2 T shaved parmesan cheese
• 4 sage leaves (thinly sliced)
• salt and pepper to taste

👨‍🍳 Instructions

1. 1bring salted water to a boil in a large pot
2. 2add butternut squash and cook until soft
3. 3remove and add to blender
4. 4blend with 1/4 c of cooking water
5. 5add pasta to boiling water
6. 6while that cooks remove sausage from casing and add to a large deep skillet over med high heat, break apart as it cooks
7. 7remove from pan after fully cooked and set aside
8. 8add olive oil to pan and mushrooms, cook until tender then removed and set aside
9. 9add butter to pan and sauté shallots and garlic, cook until golden, stirring often
10. 10add butternut squash, spinach, sage, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste
11. 11add back in the sausage and mushrooms and another 1/4 c of cooking water
12. 12remove pasta once done and add to large dish
13. 13toss with sauce
14. 14serve with parmesan cheese, optional