Pappardelle With Butternut Squash And Blue Cheese Recipes

PAPPARDELLE WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND BLUE CHEESE

Steps:

• Peel, halve, and seed the butternut squash; cut into roughly 1-inch cubes.
• Cook onion in olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan that can accommodate the pasta later. When the onion starts to become golden, add the paprika.
• Stir butter and squash into onion mixture in pan. Add Marsala and water. Bring to a simmer. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer about 10 minutes or until squash is tender but still holds its shape.
• Meanwhile, bring a large saucepan of water to boiling; add hefty pinch of salt. Cook pasta according to package directions. Toast pine nuts in a hot, dry frying pan on the stove top until dark gold. Pour them into a bowl or onto a plate to cool.
• Lightly season squash mixture to taste with salt (the blue cheese will add additional saltiness). Remove from heat.
• Finely chop sage; sprinkle over the squash, reserving some for serving.
• Remove about 1/2 cup of the pasta cooking water with a ladle or mug; drain pasta. Add drained pasta to the squash mixture. Gently stir to combine. If sauce is too dry or mixture won't come together, add some of the reserved cooking water; the starch in it encourages the sauce to emulsify and cling to the pasta. Stir in most of the pine nuts and blue cheese. Transfer to a large serving bowl. Sprinkle with remaining sage, pine nuts, and cheese. Makes 6 (1-1/2 cup) servings plus leftovers.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH WITH PECANS AND BLUE CHEESE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Halve the squash, leaving the skin on, and scoop out the seeds, then cut into 1-inch cubes; you don't need to be precise just keep the pieces uniformly small.
• Put into a roasting tin with the oil and strip about 4 stalks thyme of their leaves, sprinkling over the butternut squash. If you can't get any fresh thyme, sprinkle over dried.
• Roast in the oven for about 30 to 45 minutes or until tender.
• Once out of the oven, remove the squash to a bowl and scatter over the pecans and crumble over the cheese tossing everything together gently. Check the seasoning and add the last couple of stalks of thyme torn into small sprigs to decorate.

PAPPARDELLE WITH BUTTERNUT SQUASH, BLUE CHEESE AND PINE NUTS

Steps:

• Fry the onion in the olive oil over a medium heat in a large, heavy-based pan that can accommodate all the pasta later. After about 10 minutes, add the paprika. Add the cubed butternut squash, then add the butter, stirring everything together well in the pan. Add the Marsala and water. Once the mixture starts to simmer, put the lid on, turn down the heat and simmer for about 20 minutes, or until the squash is tender but still holds its shape. Season to taste (keeping in mind that the cheese will be salty too), then sprinkle the sage into the squash mixture, reserving some to garnish. Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling, salted water according to the packet instructions. Toast the pine nuts in a separate hot, dry pan, tip them into a bowl and set aside. Before you drain the pasta, reserve a mugful of the cooking water. Add the drained pasta to the squash and slowly stir to combine. Add some of the pasta cooking water to help the sauce emulsify, then add the blue cheese and half the pine nuts. Gently combine, then sprinkle the remaining pine nuts and sage on top and serve.