Creamy Butternut Squash Pasta- 21 Day Fix Recipe

Oh my gosh, this pasta is good.  It came out of a need to fill a macaroni and cheese craving while still limiting my dairy.  I can have a little bit of dairy, but full blown macaroni and cheese with a pound of cheese, cream and butter is way to much.  Butternut squash to the rescue!  This recipe isn't dairy free, but they dairy has definitely been cut back a lot.  It also has a secret serving of veggies which is always great.

Ingredients:
1 box pasta (I used Gluten free penne with 6 servings per box)
1 package Italian sausage links (4 servings)
12 oz Part Skim Ricotta Cheese
8 oz Gruyere Cheese, grated
16 oz Butternut Squash, cubed
2 tsp all purpose seasoning.
Unsalted Vegetable Broth

Directions:
Cook the pasta according to package directions, drain and distribute between baking dishes.  Grill the sausage links, allow to cool, slice and add to the pasta in the baking dishes.

Meanwhile, steam the butternut squash and transfer to a blender with the ricotta cheese and all purpose seasoning.  Blend until smooth, adding vegetable broth as necessary.  Add half the gruyere cheese, and blend until incorporated.  Taste, and add more seasoning if necessary.  You should end up with a nacho cheese consistency.  

Stir the cheese sauce into the pasta and sausage mixture until well combined.  Sneak a taste and get super excited by the cheesy goodness.

Top with the remaining gruyere cheese, and wrap in aluminum foil to freeze.  Alternatively, pop in a 350 degree oven until bubbly or about 30 minutes.

There you go!  Macaroni and cheese you can feel good about.  The whole recipe serves 6, or 3 servings per pan.  If you are serving a larger crowd, you can just make one pan.

with mushrooms sautéed in olive oil with garlic and parsley

21 Day Fix Conversion: 1 red, 1 yellow, 1/2 blue, 1/3 green.