You guys – this delicata squash pasta sauce is money!
I saw my friend Courtney make a Pinch of Yum recipe using butternut squash, fried pancetta and sage.
I had none of those ingredients!
But I did have delicata squash – duh! If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know my love of delicata squash is deep.
What is Delicata Squash?
I love that delicata squash is sometimes referred to as the lazy person’s squash, because the skin is edible and you don’t have to peel it like butternut squash.
How do you roast it?
If you have an air fryer, simply cut in half (seeds and all) and cook for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Once cooled, you can slice in half and easily remove the seeds. I’ve used delicata squash to make delicata wonton soup, delicata hush puppies, and even delicata squash twice baked potatoes.
Delicata Squash Pasta Sauce
A creamy, slightly sweet pasta sauce that will soon be on your fall menu - so good!
Ingredients
- 1 large delicata squash, roasted
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk
- 4 cloves garlic
- 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
- 2 tbsp whipped cream cheese
- 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
Instructions
- Cut the delicata squash in half. Put in air fryer (or oven) at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or until fork tender. Cool slightly, remove seeds.
- In a blender, add the squash, chicken broth, almond milk, garlic, ricotta cheese, whipped cream cheese, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper.
- Because we still have the skin on the squash, blend the sauce for at least 3 minutes. There is sodium in the chicken broth, so I season to taste with salt and pepper at the end.
Notes
This made 3 cups of sauce. I used 1/2 cup of sauce to coat 1 cup of cooked pasta.
On my WW plan, it's 2 points per 1/2 cup. Click this link to see the points for your WW plan.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1 gramsAmount Per Serving: Calories: 59Total Fat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 4mgSodium: 240mgCarbohydrates: 10gFiber: 2gSugar: 3gProtein: 4g
As soon as I made the pasta dish, I immediately thought of macaroni and cheese. Yesterday for lunch I made a mini baked macaroni and cheese. One cup cooked pasta, 1/2 cup delicata pasta sauce, 1 ounce good cheddar cheese. Mixed that together and topped with a tablespoon of bread crumbs and baked in my air fryer at 400 for 10 minutes.
Can you use dishes in an airfryer?
Yep! Think of your air fryer as a mini oven – whatever is oven safe is air fryer safe.
Pinky swear you can convince your family with either the pasta sauce or the mac n cheese. Both are amazing and I am saving my delicata squash seeds to grow my own next spring.
I think my daughter Hannah and son-in-law Jacob are happy to have their own place to live now. If for nothing else not to be subjected to my love affair with delicata squash. I am not sure I have convinced my twin sister either. That’s okay – more for me!
Lin the idea of Mac and cheese. Any vegan methods?
Hi Susan! I am not familiar with vegan cheese and how melty they are – so sorry! But my friend Justin has a recipe using cashews for a creamy cheese sauce – I am sure you could substitute that 😁 https://crowmoonkitchen.com/2019/09/23/the-bizzycrow-show-gets-cheesy/
Love it! Even my non squash eaters love it—thanks!
That’s great Audrey! Thanks for letting me know 😀
So easy and delicious!!!
Thank you Laurie!
I had no idea that you can remove the seeds after cooking! I love this squash but struggled with cutting prior to cooking. I have to try this,
It’s a game changer! Especially with squash like acorn or butternut that are nearly impossible to cut without fear of chopping a finger off!
OMG! I have everything but the ricotta…I am 100% making this this weekend! Thank you for the recipe! You were the first person I ever followed to used delicata and I quickly became obsessed with it!
Yes! It’s so good! I had the mac n cheese again for lunch today. Thinking of doing a broccoli cheese bake maybe??