This butternut squash pasta is healthy, comforting, and delicious! Roasted squash, sage, and thyme fill the creamy sauce with cozy autumn flavor.
The first time I made this butternut squash pasta sauce, Jack couldn’t stop talking about it for days. “That sauce!” he kept saying. “That sauce!” Of course, I teased him for it, but if I’m being totally honest, I was completely smitten with it too.
Looking at this butternut squash pasta, you might expect it to taste like mac and cheese. But don’t be fooled. The creamy sauce is rich and nutty, with bold autumn flavor from herbs like sage and thyme. Because it’s so flavorful and complex, this butternut squash pasta would make a show-stopping vegetarian main dish at a special occasion dinner (pasta for Thanksgiving, anyone?). Still, it’s really comforting and easy to make, so go ahead and enjoy it on regular old weeknights too.
Why You’ll Love This Butternut Squash Pasta Recipe
- No heavy cream required! Roasted, blended butternut squash and cashews create the sauce’s rich and creamy texture. It’s totally dairy-free, though Jack likes to top his bowl with a little Parmesan cheese.
- It tastes like fall. The combination of the sweet, caramelized squash with the woodsy sage and thyme fills this cozy pasta dish with fall flavor.
- It’s surprisingly easy to make. This butternut squash pasta recipe feels elevated, but it’s actually simple to make. Just roast the squash, blend up the sauce, cook the pasta, and toss it all together with a little pasta cooking water. So easy!
Butternut Squash Pasta Ingredients
If you love butternut squash, you’ll go crazy for this pasta sauce! In it, the squash is front and center, adding to the creamy texture and supplying sweet autumn flavor. You’ll need 1/2 small squash to make this recipe, enough to yield 1 cup cooked flesh. Chop up the other half and roast it, or save it for a salad or soup. In addition to the squash, gather these ingredients to make this recipe:
- Shallots and garlic – They roast along with the squash, becoming sweet, nutty, and tender. Yellow onion works well in place of the shallots if you don’t have any on hand.
- Cashews – My go-to ingredient for making sauces rich and creamy. Make sure to use raw, not roasted, cashews to give the sauce a neutral flavor. If you don’t have a high-speed blender, soak the cashews for 6 hours before making the sauce.
- Nutritional yeast – It adds umami flavor to this butternut squash pasta sauce.
- Balsamic vinegar – For tang.
- Sage and thyme – They add earthy autumn flavor to the creamy sauce. I love using fresh herbs here, but in a pinch, you can substitute 1 teaspoon each dried sage and dried thyme.
- Extra-virgin olive oil – For richness.
- And sea salt and fresh black pepper – To make all the flavors pop!
Last but not least, you’ll need some pasta! I like to serve this sauce over rotini, but you can use any pasta shape you like. I recommend a shape with lots of folds and creases to catch the delicious sauce.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
How to Make Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce
This butternut squash pasta sauce is super easy to make! Here’s how I do it:
First, roast the veggies. Drizzle the squash with olive oil and sprinkle it with salt and pepper. Then, place it cut-side-down on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Wrap the shallots and garlic in foil with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt, and add them to the baking sheet too. Roast for 30 minutes at 425°F, or until the squash is tender.
Then, blend the butternut squash sauce. Add 1 cup roasted butternut squash, the shallots, peeled garlic cloves, cashews, nutritional yeast, vinegar, herbs, salt, and pepper to a high-speed blender. Pour in some water and olive oil to get the blender moving, and blend to form a thick, creamy sauce.
Assembling the Pasta
Once the sauce is ready, the pasta comes together quickly:
Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling water until al dente. Before you drain the pasta, reserve 1 cup of the starchy pasta water.
Toss the pasta with the sauce and some of the reserved pasta water. Return the cooked pasta to the pot. Add the butternut squash sauce, plus 1/2 to 1 cup of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce and coat the pasta.
Season with salt and pepper to taste, and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- Add plenty of pasta water. The pasta water is the secret ingredient in this recipe. It loosens the sauce, giving it a silky, velvety texture instead of an overly thick one. It also adds starches that help the sauce coat the pasta. I often use a full cup when I make this recipe. Don’t forget to reserve some before you drain the pasta!
- Make it nut-free. Replace the cashews with 1/4 cup sunflower seeds or 1/2 cup ricotta cheese. You can also simply omit them for a lighter sauce.
- Get ahead. Roast the veggies up to 2 days ahead and store them in the fridge until you’re ready to make the pasta. If necessary, warm the sauce over low heat before serving.
What to Serve with Butternut Squash Pasta
Jack and I love this recipe with sautéed broccoli on the side. Make roasted broccoli if you prefer, or replace it with roasted cauliflower, roasted Brussels sprouts, or sautéed kale. A fall salad, like my Pear Salad, Caesar Salad, or Shaved Brussels Sprouts Salad, would pair nicely with this recipe too.
If you like, round out the meal with crusty bread or homemade focaccia to wipe up any sauce that’s left at the bottom of your bowl. It’s so delicious that you won’t want one drop to go to waste!
More Butternut Squash Recipes to Try
If you love this pasta, try one of these delicious butternut squash recipes next:
- Butternut Squash Ravioli
- Butternut Squash Soup
- Butternut Squash Risotto
- Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Creamy Butternut Squash Pasta
Ingredients
- ½ small butternut squash, halved vertically and seeded
- Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 shallots, coarsely chopped (⅔ cup)
- 3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
- ¾ cup water
- ½ cup raw cashews
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
- 10 fresh sage leaves
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, plus more for garnish
- 12 ounces rotini pasta
- Red pepper flakes, for sprinkling (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Drizzle the squash with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and place cut side down on the baking sheet. Wrap the shallots and garlic cloves in foil with a drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt and place on the baking sheet. Roast for 30 minutes, or until the squash is soft.
- Measure 1 cup of the roasted squash flesh and transfer to a blender with the shallot, peeled garlic, water, cashews, olive oil, nutritional yeast, vinegar, sage, thyme, ¾ teaspoon salt, and several grinds of pepper. Blend until creamy.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions in a pot of salted boiling water. Reserve 1 cup of the hot pasta water.
- Drain the pasta and return to the pot. Stir in the sauce, adding ½ to 1 cup of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce and coat the pasta. Season with ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt. Top with freshly ground black pepper, a few thyme leaves, and red pepper flakes, if desired.
I started with a box of butternut squash soup (. Puréed.) I bought it at natural grocers, and it was reaching its date, so I looked up recipes for how to use it.
While I boil the water for noodles, I put the cashews, spices, garlic, and shallots in a dry pan heated to medium, medium high. I stirred that for a couple of minutes and then added the olive oil. I used my ninja shake attachment. That together with the butternut squash, and added a tablespoon of arrowroot powder.
Then I added the balsamic vinegar and returned it to the pot in which I had a Roasted the garlic mixture to thicken slightly. I didn’t need any of the reserved pasta water for consistency. I added the salt and pepper at the end, before combining with the noodles. It worked great! I even used a combination of vegetable rotini and chickpea, rotini, and I didn’t notice the “gluten-free” texture that I usually have with non-traditional noodles.
So glad you enjoyed the pasta!
Do you have suggestions as to what to do with the rest of the cooked squash?
Hi Judy, depending on how much you have, you could blend some into hummus, using this recipe as a guide, or make the filling for this butternut squash ravioli. I also love mashed squash in quesadillas!
I ended up using a whole butternut squash but kept all the other recipe amounts the same. The sauce still ended up with the perfect consistency.
Butternut squash Mac and cheese is really good.
Can ground sage be used in replacement of sage leaves? If so, do you have any quantity recommendations? Thank you.
Hi Jessica, dried sage will work fine here. I recommend starting with 1/2 teaspoon and adding more to taste.
This looks amazing! And also not super difficult 🙂 If I can’t find sage leaves at the grocery store, how much sage seasoning should I use? Thanks much! 🙂
Hi, excited to try this recipe! If I don’t have nutritional yeast, could I use parmesan cheese instead?
Yeah, Parmesan would be great here! You might need a bit more to get a good balance of flavors. I’d start with the 1T grated and add more to taste. Hope this helps!
Hi! I have a cashew allergy-what could I substitute for the cashews?
Hi Hillary, You could use 1/2 cup blanched slivered almonds or 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds. Hope this helps!
Can’t wait to try it. Was previously buying a very expensive healthy Dave’s bottled version.
Will let you know.
Lainey
This is amazing! My family and I are now dairy free because my daughter is allergic. We all miss Mac and cheese but not anymore! This is fantastic!!! Thanks so much for the allergy friendly healthy alternative!
Hi Ashley, I’m so glad you and your family love the recipe!
This recipe is incredible. I make a double batch and freeze it. My toddler gobbles it down.
I’m so glad she’s enjoyed it!
I am a lover of butternut squash pasta and have used several recipes over the years. This one is the best. Thank you so much!
I’m so glad you loved it!
Can you freeze the sauce?
Hi Kirsty, it freezes ok – the texture gets a little grainy after it thaws.
Can I use raw almonds or hazelnuts in place of cashews ? This is what we have on hand
Hi Alice, cashews make it the creamiest. Almonds work ok, but the skins will make it grittier – I usually use slivered almonds that don’t have skins. I don’t think hazelnuts will blend as smooth.
Hi! Can I use bay leaves instead of sage? I only have rubbed sage and I think it might be old.
Hi Grace, I would try using rosemary instead, another warm fall flavor. I think bay leaves would have an odd taste here.
This looks so good. Can the sauce be made ahead of time and reheated?
Yep! It’ll thicken – if it’s too thick, just stir in a bit of water as you reheat it.
Wow wow! This was absolutely delicious! Really liked the herb flavors… I wondered about how much it calls for but no, it’s absolutely perfect. Thank you ?? for all you do. I am hooked on your work!
Btw, i soaked the cashews for 30 mins in very hot water just to make sure they blended easily.
Hi Erica, I’m so glad you loved the pasta and all of the herbs!
Hi! I am going to give this a try. I’m using cashews this time but is there any other thing I can use in place of them next time? I should only have walnut, macadamia and pecans. ..which just aren’t the same as cashew. Thanks!
Hi Mary, walnuts would be delicious, the sauce just won’t be as creamy.
I’m sensitive to yeast. Any suggestions for a substitute?
Hi Eileen, you can just skip it in this recipe.
Hi! Could I replace nutritional yeast and cashews with parmesan cheese or cheddar or mozzarella cheese? Trying to replace what I don’t have with what I do! 🙂
Hi Cali – I haven’t tried this, but I would try about 1/3 cup parmesan cheese in place of both the cashews and nutritional yeast. Instead of 3/4 cup water, I would start with 1/2 and add more if the mixture is too thick (easier to add more than take some away). I think the other cheeses might be weird in this blender sauce but the parmesan should do the trick. In step 5, you might not need the additional salt.
Hope that helps!
This is so good! A new favorite!
SO GOOD!!! I am in love with this sauce.