And because butternut and sage are such great friends, there’s also a recipe for Sage Butternut Squash Sauce from the Southern Food and Beverage Museum in New Orleans. It’s from Liz Williams, founder of the museum and she says, “Sometimes you want pasta and not tomato sauce. This is especially in true in winter … when there is an abundance of butternut squash. Of course, the quick solution is to make pasta with garlic, olive oil and cheese. There’s nothing wrong with that. But when you want a richer sauce, butternut squash is perfect.” (There’s already a recipe for Butternut Squash Steaks with Brown Butter-Sage Sauce in the recipe listings.)
Ingredients:
1 medium butternut 3 tablespoons olive oil plus more for oiling the squash 5 minced garlic cloves 1 cup white wine, or as needed 1 tablespoon minced fresh sage leaves Salt and pepper Hot cooked pasta Grated Parmesan, for serving
Preparation:
Heat oven to 325 degrees.
Cut squash in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds and oil the cut sides of the squash. Place them cut side down on a sheet pan. Bake until tender, about an hour. Remove and scoop out pulp.
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a skillet and add the squash pulp and garlic. Stir, adding wine as needed to loosen the sauce. Cook, stirring frequently, 20 minutes. Add sage and season to taste. Toss the sauce with hot pasta and pass with grated Parmesan.