Plant-Based Butternut Squash Pasta Bake
A flavorful whole food, plant-based pasta dish filled with veggies and a creamy butternut squash sauce!
Servings 8
Calories 374kcal
Equipment
- Food Processor
- 9x13 casserole dish
- Large mixing bowl
Ingredients
Sauce
- 1 medium butternut squash OR 30oz frozen cubed butternut squash **See notes below for steamable butternut squash
- 2 Tbsp minced garlic
- 1 1/4 cup raw cashews
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
- 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups water
Noodles
- 16 oz rotini chickpea noodles
Filling
- 1 large red onion chopped
- 1 lb white mushrooms chopped
- 2 packed cups kale stems removed and finely chopped
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper ground
Instructions
- *Skin this step if using frozen cubed butternut squash* Preheat oven to 425 and line baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone mat. Slice squash in half lengthwise and remove seeds with a spoon. Place squash cut-side down and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until knife inserted into squash comes out very easily.1 medium butternut squash OR 30oz frozen cubed butternut squash
- Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and 1 tablespoon water and saute for 2-3 minutes. Add mushrooms and saute for another 5 minutes. Add kale, salt and pepper and saute for another 3 minutes, or until kale is tender. Add water if needed, though mushrooms typically release enough water that additional water is not needed. Remove from heat.3/4 tsp salt, 1 large red onion, 1 lb white mushrooms, 2 packed cups kale, 1/2 tsp black pepper
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package instructions or until al dente. Stirring regularly will keep noodles from sticking to each other. Once cooked, remove from heat and let sit.16 oz rotini chickpea noodles
- Once squash is cooked, scoop out flesh and transfer to a food processor. Add garlic, cashews, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, salt and water. Blend until smooth.2 Tbsp minced garlic, 1 1/4 cup raw cashews, 3 Tbsp lemon juice, 1 Tbsp nutritional yeast, 1 1/2 cups water, 1/2 tsp salt
- Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees F.
- Drain noodles. Add noodles, sauce and filling to a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine. Transfer to casserole dish, cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes, remove foil and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes before serving.
Notes
**This dish can be made with frozen, steamable butternut squash to reduce cook time. To do so, steam 30oz of frozen butternut squash in the microwave (and skip step 1 above)
To make this into a freezer meal, prepare as instructed, but do not bake. Cover well and freeze up to 1 month. To bake, preheat oven to 375 degrees F, cover with foil and bake for 25 minutes, if thawed, and 60 minutes, if frozen. Remove foil and bake for another 5 minutes.