I've always wanted to try cooking mac and cheese or pasta alla carbonara but the wild boar is not a huge fan of creamy, cheesy pasta so no chance of seeing those recipes. This pasta is as creamy and cheesy as it gets. I had a bit of mascarpone cheese left (you will know why in my future post, will be a secret for the time being =P), so I thought I'd try a creamy pasta thinking the wild boar won't mind that small amount of cheese. I was right! He enjoyed it. Mascarpone cheese is very mild and it has a slight sweetness to it so it went very well with the salty bacon and sweet butternut squash.
I am sending this dish to Kevin of Closet cooking who is hosting this week's Presto Pasta Night.
Ingredients: serves 3-4
- 280g pasta (I used Dischi Volanti)
- 1 small butternut squash - cut into small cubes
- 250g bacon lardons
- 4 tbs mascarpone cheese
- 1/2 cup pasta water
- 1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
- Salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tsp (or more) chili flakes
- Parmesan
Directions:
- Toss together butternut squash and 1 tbs of olive oil and spread evenly on a baking tray.
- Roast butternut squash in a 150°C pre-heated oven for about 20 mins or until tender. Remove from oven and leave aside for later use.
- In a pan, stir fry bacon lardons until golden browned.
- While bacon is browning, cook pasta as instructed on the package. Drain. Save some pasta water for later use.
- Add pasta to browned bacon.
- Stir in mascarpone. The remaining heat from cooked pasta should be able to melt the cheese. Add pasta water if too dry. I added about 1/2 cup.
- Mix in roasted butternut squash.
- Add salt, pepper and chili flakes to taste.
- Serve with lots of parmesan cheese.
I am sending this dish to Kevin of Closet cooking who is hosting this week's Presto Pasta Night.
