This has quickly become one of my staple mid-week meals. Its perfect to knock together quickly, and can use up loads of left-over ingredients. So many combinations of flavours and textures turn this into a real treat. The butternut squash and the tomatoes give the dish a really nice sweetness, but its balanced perfectly by the salty pancetta and the spice of the chilli and garlic. The tomatoes blister and burst, forming a really nice, light sauce for the pasta. If you have some, some white wine works wonders, bringing all the ingredients together and really completing the dish. You can easily make this a vegetarian meal by leaving out the pancetta. As a side note, the different colours of the dish make it look inviting, and a real picture of health!
Ingredients (serves 4):
1/2 butternut squash, diced, pre-roasted
8-10 heads of tender-stem broccoli
200g cherry tomatoes
2 cloves of garlic
100ml white wine
30g grated parmesan cheese
50g pancetta
20g butter
Chilli flakes
Zest of 1/2 a lemon
500g Penne pasta
15 large basil leaves
Method:
Bring a large pan of water to the boil, adding a large pinch of salt.
Slice the broccoli lengthways (down the stem). Thinly slice the garlic cloves.
Once the salted water is boiled, add the broccoli and cook for 2-3 mins. Remove and place to one side. Return the pan to the boil, and add in the pasta. Cook 1 minute less than the packet instructions (about 7-8 minutes).
In a large frying pan over a medium-high heat, add 2 tbsp olive oil and the butter, and melt. Once melted, add the pancetta, and cook until golden and crisp. Remove the pancetta and place to one side.
In the same pan, add the tomatoes and leave for 4 minutes to blister, turning occasionally. Once blistered, add the sliced garlic and chilli flakes and fry for about a minute, being careful not to let the garlic go brown. Once the oil is aromatic, add in the white wine, and let it reduce for 3 minutes or so.
By this point, the pasta should be nearly ready. Add the pasta into the pan with the tomatoes in, keeping behind some starchy pasta water. Add in the broccoli and squash. Grate in 15g Parmesan cheese and lemon zest and stir through, making sure everything is coated. If the sauce is a little dry, add in a splash of pasta water to loosen it. Turn off the heat.
Taste for seasoning, and add more salt and pepper to taste. Once its all combined, add the pancetta and basil, and give it 1 final stir through. Serve with torn basil, the rest of the grated Parmesan and a few twists of black pepper.
Would absolutely love for you guys to try this one and let me know how you got on! Please tell your friends who you think would be interested about my Instagram (@OTCooks_Eats) and the blog.
Much love,
OT
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