Spooky Pasta with a Gourd-geous Cream Sauce
Dive into the enchanting world of Fort Myers Executive Chef, Jillian Lane. Get ready to be spellbound by her latest creation, the "Gourd-geous Cream Sauce." This delectable sauce is the perfect addition to elevate your Halloween feast, captivating your taste buds with its mesmerizing flavors. Prepare to be whisked away on a culinary adventure as this bewitching sauce transforms your meal into a truly unforgettable experience.
Yield: 8 Servings
Equipment
- 1 Large pot
- 1 Medium Sauce Pan
- 1 Vitamix or High-powered Blender
Materials
- 2 8.8 Oz Bow Tie Pasta (two 8.8 Ounces packs) Italian Donne Del Grano Organic Zebra Bowties (Farfallini Magia Bianca) Colored Pasta
Cream Sauce
- 2 small or 1 medium butternut squash. approx 4 cups Peeled, seeded and small diced
- 3 med shallots sliced into thin rounds
- 4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil divided
- 6-8 fresh sage leaves
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
- 3 C heavy whipping cream
- 3 oz fontina cheese grated
- ¼ C Sherry
- ½ tsp. cardamom
- ½ tsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp. smoked paprika
- ½ tsp. white pepper
Instructions
Pasta Preparation
- In a large pot, bring 6 quarts of water to a rolling boil, add salt to taste.
- Add contents of package to boiling water. Stir gently.
- Return to a boil. For authentic "al dente" pasta, boil uncovered, stirring occasionally for 11minutes. For more tender pasta, boil an additional 1 minute.
- Remove from heat. Drain well. Set aside.
Cream Sauce Instructions
- In a medium size stock pot, add the heavy cream and heat at medium-high until it comes to low simmer, turn heat down to med-low and allow it to thicken and reduce slightly, stir often, about 30 minutes. Do not allow it to scald or boil up. Add the grated fontina cheese and stir to incorporate.
- Turn heat down and keep warm.
- Meanwhile, using a high sided skillet, warm EVOO on medium heat, add shallots and allow to caramelize slightly, add the additional 2 Tbsp. EVOO, the sage leaves and the diced butternut. Turn heat up to med-high and stir occasionally until squash is tender, about 25-30 minutes. Add the spices and stir to coat the squash for about 5 more minutes. Deglaze the pan with the sherry, using a wooden spoon to break up the bits from the bottom of the pan. Once your squash is fork-tender, add the cream sauce to the squash mixture.
- Using an emersion blender, mix all together until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. You can also use a Vitamix or good blender for this step.
- Serve over your favorite pasta, top with freshly grated pecorino-Romano and sage leaves to garnish.
Notes
*If the sauce cools and thickens, you can place it back into a stock pot and warm it with a little vegetable stock to thin it out a bit.