Butternut Squash Fettuccine with Bacon & Baby Spinach

Creamy butternut squash purée coats fettuccine, finished with Parmesan, crisp bacon, and wilted baby spinach. A cozy, savory pasta dinner for two in about 50 minutes.

Unbalanced

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Chop the bacon into small pieces.

Step 2

Heat a medium saucepan over medium heat.

Step 3

Add the bacon to the saucepan and cook until crispy, 3–4 minutes. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel lined plate; remove the saucepan from the heat but leave the bacon fat in the saucepan.

Step 4

Peel and mince the garlic. Peel and small dice the onion.

Step 5

Wash the squash; trim off and discard the ends. Halve the squash lengthwise and scrape out the seeds from each half; peel and small dice the squash. You should have about 1 1/2 cups of diced squash.

Step 6

Return the saucepan to medium heat. Add the onion, minced garlic, and butternut squash to the bacon fat. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 2 minutes.

Step 7

Add broth to pan with squash mixture, bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, and let simmer, covered, until the squash is fork-tender, 15 minutes.

Step 8

Fill a large pot halfway with water, cover, and bring to a boil. Uncover, add salt and pasta, and stir for a few seconds. Cook until desired firmness, 8–10 minutes.

Step 9

Finely grate the Parmesan cheese and set aside.

Step 10

Once the squash mixture is cooked through, purée with an immersion (hand) blender or regular blender. Return the puréed mixture to the saucepan on low heat to keep warm. Stir in the grated Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper.

Step 11

Add pasta to the saucepan with the squash purée; toss to combine.

Step 12

Add spinach to the pasta and stir, allowing the spinach to wilt into the pasta, about 3 minutes.

Step 13

To serve, divide pasta between bowls and top with bacon. Enjoy!