Happy Fall! Change of season means change of flavors in my home. It’s the time of year when sage & squash become staples. Sage is a really easy herb to grow and it’s a great one for kids to touch and smell as the leaves are almost suede-like in texture and scent your fingers with the comforting aroma of Thanksgiving. I love to take those soft sage leaves and fry them up in a little bit of butter. They get crispy and lose the bitter flavor of the raw herb. This pasta is one of our family’s fall favorites – I’ve been making it for years. It consists of eight ingredients and everyone in our house loves it when I bring this shallow pot to the table and open it up. Full disclosure: when I stopped by the co-op to get some squash, they were out of butternut, so I picked up a kabocha squash instead. That’s the variety you’ll see in these photos. Moral of the story – don’t be afraid to switch out similar varieties of vegetables in recipes! Hope you enjoy!

Butternut (or Kabocha!) Squash and Sausage Pasta
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Get this:
Olive oil
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4 c. Butternut squash cut into 1 inch cubes (or 2 16 Oz packages of pre-cut)
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1 lb bulk breakfast sausage
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1 package/bunch fresh sage
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1 lb orecchiette pasta
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2/3 cup heavy cream
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1 tbsp butter
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Grated parmeggiano reggiano
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Do this:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
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Toss squash in 3 tbsp olive oil to coat. Season with salt and pepper and arrange on two parchment lined sheet pans. *
Roast until tender and brown on the edges, about 25 mins.
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Meanwhile, cook sausage in a large skillet over medium light heat, breaking it up into small pieces. Add 1 tsp chopped sage and continue to cook until sausage is browned.
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As the sausage cooks, boil pasta according to package directions, reserving 1/3 cup of pasta water before draining. *
Add the pasta water to the sausage, scraping the bottom of the pan to release the browned bits. Turn the heat to low, add the pasta and the squash to the skillet and fold together. Add the heavy cream and mix.
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In a separate small skillet, heat 1 tbsp butter over medium high heat. Add 8-10 sage leaves and fry for about two minutes, flipping.

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Top pasta with fried sage leaves and grated Parmesan and serve.