Fall weather has brought us inside and enjoying family, movies and just hanging out. That means we are making more chili, soups and other cozy dishes. I love a good pasta, which are the majority of my recipes. A fall pasta has all the comfort in it. This creamy pasta, was my take on this one I found on Pinterest. I used most of the same ingredients and substituted salmon for the sausage. You can easily substitute the meat out completely, if you want a vegetarian pasta. The roasted butternut squash is the standout ingredient for this dish. Also the addition of seasonings and the flavors of the salmon, really make it a delicious comforting pasta.
Ingredients for Creamy Pasta with Butternut Squash and Salmon
Fresh ingredients are best for any recipe, but especially for this fall creamy pasta. For my pasta noodles, I used bowtie. Bowtie noodles are great in creamy pastas because they can hold the sauce well and are supportive to the other ingredients. For the creamy, you will need heavy cream and shredded Parmesan cheese. Main ingredients include, fresh spinach, a whole butternut squash and salmon or meat of your choice. As far as seasonings for the pasta I like to use, salt, pepper, a little cayenne pepper, onion powder and Italian seasonings. My husband made the salmon with a herb butter of garlic, rosemary and thyme, and also seasoned it with onion powder and paprika. Portion size of the seasonings is all to your liking, we like a lot of flavor.
How to make Creamy Pasta with Butternut Squash and Salmon
Another key to making this a creamy pasta is roasting the butternut squash. Roasting the squash makes it soft and delectable in your mouth. It also pairs so well with the cream and Parmesan cheese. Dice up the butternut squash, drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper and roast it on 400 degrees for about 30-35 minutes. You can easily have it roasting while you are boiling the pasta and prepping the other ingredients. The salmon, itself is it’s own recipe, but cooked very similar to this salmon recipe. The pasta you cook according to the box, I didn’t save any pasta water but I’m sure saving a little won’t hurt. Making the sauce you will need to slightly brown minced garlic in olive oil, add the cream, Parmesan cheese and then add the spinach until it’s cooked down. Next you’ll add the cooked pasta and butternut squash. Mix it on low and let it simmer a little bit then serve hot. Top with a nice piece of salmon.
Full Recipe of Creamy Pasta with Butternut Squash
Easy Fall Creamy Pasta with Butternut Squash and Salmon
Equipment
- 1 Cast iron skillet
- 1 Sauce pan
Ingredients
Pasta and sauce
- 1 box Bow tie pasta noodles
- 2 cups Fresh spinach
- 1 cup Heavy cream
- ½ cup Shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 cloves Minced garlic
- 1 tsp Salt or to your liking
- 1 tsp Pepper or to your liking
- ½ tsp Cayenne pepper omit or to your liking
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
Roasted Butternut squash
- 1 Butternut squash
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- ¾ tsp Salt
- ¾ tsp Pepper
Salmon
- 1½ lbs Atlantic salmon
- 2 tbsp Garlic herb butter
- 1 tsp Salt or to your liking
- ½ tsp Pepper or to your liking
- ½ tsp Onion powder
Instructions
Roasted butternut squash
- Preheat oven to 400° and dice up butternut squash
- Season squash and toss with olive oil and put in pan
- Roast squash for 30 minutes or until tender
Salmon
- Season salmon
- Heat Garlic herb butter in cast iron skillet
- Add salmon to skillet and spread garlic herb butter on top
- Flip salmon after 2 minutes and cook apply more butter
- Remove salmon from skillet and set aside
Pasta
- Boil noodles according to package
- In separate saucepan on medium heat olive oil and saute minced garlic for 2-3 minutes
- Add in heavy cream and Parmesan cheese and stir for 2-3 minutes
- Add in spinach and cook until wilted down
- Turn heat to simmer and add in cooked noodles and butternut squash
- Season pasta to your liking
- Serve hot and add salmon on top
Try out this creamy pasta with butternut squash and salmon some time soon and feel the comfort of the holidays. Let me know how it turns out and any other additions that you put in your recipe.
