It was a rollercoaster of a week.
On Friday, I shipped my huge bundle of book edits back to New York. A definite high point this year. Strangely, I enjoyed the meticulous process of sifting through each chapter line by line. By the time I finished almost every page was scribbled with red ink and I squeezed in a few photo re-shoots too. I lived and breathed that document day and night, as you might have guessed from my blog absence. After a few curse words at the Staples print & copy centre (never underestimate how many times a multi-thousand dollar printer will jam…), I even printed my own copy should anything happen to the one in the mail. You will not get me this time, postal service!
Naturally, I went straight to the grocery store and bought some cheesy kale chips and a dark chocolate bar to celebrate. Living. it. up.
If that wasn’t exciting enough, we found the house of our dreams last week. We’ve been looking for almost a year now. It almost felt too good to be true and I barely slept all week. This house has everything on our list with several renovation projects for us to tackle in the future. Everything felt like it was falling into place after a challenging year. We’ve been dealing with some rental issues lately and we’re just ready to move on and settle down. Plant roots. Build another vegetable garden. Storage space! This house was the one, we were certain. I’m a bit superstitious, so I didn’t even tell my family about it because I didn’t want to jinx it.
Well.
We lost the house. It was scooped up by a higher bidder. Nothing new in this hot housing market, but it’s still tough to swallow when you get your heart set on something. We had already spent a few days planning and preparing ourselves for a quick move, taking measurements, dreaming, the whole shebang, and then it was all over just like that. I went from cloud nine to feeling rejected and defeated all within a few hours. Back to square one.
I tried to cheer us up by playing the “let’s list all the things we don’t like about the house” game. A solid effort, but we weren’t fooling anybody. Love is blind.
This dish, on the other hand, was just what we needed – a hug in a bowl, and a reminder that time heals all wounds. So what if I burned the broccoli to a crisp and overcooked the pasta. It was still major comfort food when nothing else seemed to help. Plus, I discovered that over-cooked crispy broccoli tastes a lot like kale chips. Yes, I ate every one straight off the pan. Weird, but good.
In the end, I realized that nothing good ever comes out of a full moon eclipse, especially if you happen to be pms-ing. Unless of course this meal is the end result. Then it’s not a total loss.
Onward and upward, keep the faith, may better things come to those who wait, and all that cliché jazz… :)
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Smoky Butternut Squash Sauce with Pasta and Greens
Yield
4-6
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
This recipe is adapted from my Butternut Squash Mac and Cheeze recipe from 2011. While the former version is a huge hit on the blog, some of you didn't like how sweet the sauce is. I've been playing around with this recipe every time I make it. This version I'm sharing today is still quite sweet thanks to the butternut squash and cashews, but I've tried to balance it out better with some smoky seasonings like liquid smoke, chili powder, smoked paprika, and some hot sauce for a kick and more depth of flavour. It's a big hit in this house. Feel free to adjust the various seasonings to taste. This sauce is also great heated up and poured over roasted vegetables and brown rice. Use it any way you see fit! I think you'll be surprised by how creamy and satisfying it is all without a lick of butter or oil.
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup raw cashews, soaked
- 1 (3.5-4 pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and diced (or two (450g) packages chopped squash)
- 3/4 cup water
- 2 garlic cloves
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (optional, but recommended)
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt, or to taste
- 1/8 teaspoon liquid smoke
- hot sauce, to taste
- 1 (450g) package mini shell or macaroni pasta (use gluten-free, if desired)
- roasted broccoli or sauteed kale leaves, to stir into pasta
Directions
- Add cashews in a small bowl and cover with water. Soak overnight or for at least 3-4 hours, until soft and plump. Drain and rinse before use.
- Preheat oven to 425°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. See note about prepping squash below. Spread out chopped squash on sheet and drizzle with oil. Toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt. Roast for 30-40 minutes, flipping once half way through baking, until squash is fork tender. Let cool for at least 5 minutes.
- Add the soaked and drained cashews, water, garlic, nutritional yeast (if using), lemon juice, onion powder, paprika, chili powder, and 2 cups of cooked squash into a high speed blender. Blend on high until smooth. Now add the salt, liquid smoke, and hot sauce to taste and blend again.
- Cook pasta according to package directions. If using broccoli, kale, or other vegetables, roast or sauté those too.
- Add the drained pasta back into the pot. Pour on your desired amount of sauce and stir to combine. Stir in the cooked vegetables, if using. Cook over medium until heated throughout and serve immediately.
- Leftover sauce can be stored in an air-tight container for up to 1 week or so in the fridge. It's great poured on roasted vegetables too!
Tip:
Time saver: You can also simply slice the squash in half, remove seeds, and roast the two halves rather than chopping the squash up. The butternut squash sauce makes 2.75 cups.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
I love your website! I love, love, love it! I read it for food inspiration and spirit inspiration. I love your openness and how accessible you are. I have really benefited from your recipes. You do glow, Angela. Thank you for sharing your gifts with the world.
Aw thank you Celeste, that means a lot!
Looks lovely! Can I use canned/boxed butternut squash puree? Thanks! Can’t wait to try :)
That should be fine, although I would probably use less (maybe 1.5 cups) since it’s more dense. just add to taste and it should be fine!
This Looks INCREDIBLY comforting!
I made this tonight because I had a butternut squash from my CSA. It was heavenly. I assumed that the cashews were supposed to be added in during blending, even though this was not listed in the recipe instructions. The sauce turned out really well and it was smoky and creamy and delightful. Thank you! Hope your house situation gets cleared up.
So glad you enjoyed it!
Sorry about the cashews not being in there, it’s added now.
I have two huge butternut squashed sitting on my counter right now, and thanks to you, I know just what to do with them! This sauce sounds so lovely!
It will still be good without liquid smoke right? Can’t find it here or is there something I can sub?
I was so excited to hear you found a house!…I’m so sorry it didn’t work out, but I truly believe things happen for a reason and there HAS to be a one with something that one didn’t have! Congrats on sending in the edits! I know it’s OSG’s birthday month…just think of everything you’ve accomplished!
Sorry about the house Angela, I just finished the house buying process myself and I know how soul destroying it can be, but you are right, this squash recipe looks fantastic, so something good came out in the end. It’s just what I needed for that sucker taking up all the space in my vegetable tray in the fridge! Your recipes are so inspiring to me, thank you so much for posting them.
So sorry to hear about the house. We moved last weekend, everyone was surprised because we had kept it so quiet – like you we didn’t want to jinx it. I truly believe something better is out there for you. I’m off to roast some squash!
I’m sorry about the house :( What a stressful week all around. I’m glad the book has gone through, and at least this way you still have the hope and excitement of the *really* perfect house still to be found…
Oh, I’m so sorry to hear about the house. It’s hard to see things that way when you’re going through the motions, but just believe that there was something utterly wrong with the house that you didn’t find in it’s outer shell. Maybe the pluming wasn’t the newest anymore, or some major component would be breaking soon after you moved in – if the house really was for you it would have worked out. Don’t despair! Your perfect house will come when it’s ready for you.
– on another note. I need to go buy some more nutritional yeast and make this. My CSA box had lots of butternut squash in it this week, this recipe is meant to happen.
So sorry to hear about the house, Angela. I truly believe everything happens for a reason. You are wonderful and when it’s right it will happen. Who knows, maybe there were structural problems or something that will make you grateful it didn’t happen! Good luck with the search!
Sorry to hear about the house but I’m sure the real house of your dreams will come along soon. I think that life will always work itself out for the better and you will realize that later after you get over the disappointment. But I am super excited to try this recipe – might have to make it happen tonight!
I’m so sorry that you guys didn’t get the house! It’s so hard when you get excited about something that doesn’t pan out. I’m sure there are still many other perfect houses for you guys waiting out there though – just keep looking! :)
This dish looks so cozy and comforting for this recent chilly weather we’ve had! Where did you find the liquid smoke though? I’ve never been able to find it anywhere around here!
Totally know how you feel with the house, my husband and I had found the perfect house for us and it was scooped up – I won’t lie we were bummed for a couple months. Things do have a way of working out and it just means there is something even better that awaits you.
In other news this dish looks absolutely amazing – I wish I could just eat it right off my computer screen! – I even have a butternut squash and I know it can sense me eye-balling it right now – Ha.
Sorry to hear you didn’t get the house. Hopefully, something else will come along soon!
This dish looks like the perfect comfort food! Yum!
Thanks so much for another wonderful recipe. I have a butternut squash and was wondering what to do with it. I am so sorry that you didn’t get your dream house. Way to go on getting the cookbook edited. I can hardly wait for it to be published.
Huge congrats on the book!! And here’s to finding your home, one that was truly meant to be. I’ve found it is very difficult to recite all of those PMA quotes and thoughts..but that having patience is that much more rewarding :)
I made butternut squash mac and cheese this weekend too! It is the perfect comfort food. Sorry to hear about the house! The GTA housing market is nuts… but I have hope for you!
looks so bright and creamy! thanks for reminding me about using cashews as a creamy replacement for cream. “eat to live” has an amazing cashew salad dressing which uses the same principles. thanks for jogging my memory! nice thing to keep in mind while heading into the typically overload on richness time of year.!