This post may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
Creamy, cosy, and full of flavour, this butternut pasta with crispy sage recipe turns simple roasted squash into a silky pasta sauce. You blend it up with cream and toss with the warm buttery pasta. Finished with nutty brown butter, crispy sage, and a generous grating of Parmesan, it feels so luxurious and comforting with a balance of sweet and savoury.
This post gives you everything you need: a step-by-step recipe, troubleshooting advice, as well as make-ahead and freezing guidance. You may like my creamy pastina recipe or my truffle pasta for another easy but a little more indulgent pasta.
Table of Contents
Why you will love this recipe:
- Seasonal & comforting: Roasted butternut squash brings natural sweetness.
- Silky texture: Blended with cream and a splash of pasta water for a smooth sauce to coat each pasta.
- Easily adaptable: Simple swaps make it vegan, lighter, or even baked into a pasta bake.
- Crowd-pleasing: Perfect for midweek meals, but elegant enough for dinner with friends.
Ingredients:
Full recipe can be found in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, just scroll down!
Butternut squash – you need a whole one, about 1kg. I roast it without peeling as I find that far easier and just scoop from the skin once soft.
Double cream – also known as heavy cream. Single cream would work too.
Sage leaves – I like to finish the pasta with a sage brown butter and then top with crispy sage. This is optional but it takes the recipe from a 10/10 to an 100/10.
Substitutions and Variations:
Butternut pasta bake: Mix the sauce with cooked pasta, transfer to a baking dish, top with mozzarella and breadcrumbs, and bake at 200°C until bubbling and golden.
Lighter version: Use light crème fraîche or simply blend the roasted squash with stock instead of cream.
Here’s how to make butternut pasta:
Here’s a step by step guide for what you need to do, but you can find the full recipe at the bottom of the page for detailed instructions.
ONE: Preheat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan). Halve the butternut squash lengthways, scoop out the seeds, and score the flesh lightly with a knife. Place it flesh-side up in a baking tray.
TWO: Drizzle the cut garlic head with olive oil, wrap it in foil, and add it to the tray. Roast for 45–50 minutes, until the squash is very tender. After 25-30 mins, add the onion to the tray, tossing in the oil on the tray.
THREE: Scoop out the roasted squash flesh and place it in a blender with the roasted onions. Squeeze in the soft roasted garlic cloves. Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the pasta until al dente.
FOUR: Add the cream and blend until silky smooth, adding a splash of pasta water if needed. The sauce should be thick but pourable. It must be silky smooth so if it’s not, keep adding liquid and blending until it’s velvety. Season well with salt and pepper.
FIVE: In a separate large frying pan, heat over medium heat and melt the butter. Add the sage leaves and fry until the butter foams and turns golden brown. Remove the crispy sage leaves. Pour half the brown butter into a small bowl and leave the rest in the pan.
SIX: Add the drained pasta to the pan with the brown butter and toss well. Add the butternut squash sauce, most of the Parmesan, and toss to coat the pasta well. You may need to add a splash of pasta water to loosen it.
Cooking Tips:
Silky smooth sauce: Keep blending for longer than you think as you want the sauce totally smooth. You may need to add pasta water to reach this.
Balance the sweetness: Sometimes, butternut squash can make your sauce taste very sweet. If this happens, adding a dash of lemon juice or white wine vinegar will help.
Frequently Asked Questions
To make butternut pasta ahead of time, you could roast the butternut, onion and garlic, blend with the cream then transfer to an airtight container and cool. Place in the fridge and it will keep up to 2 days. When ready, make the brown butter as instructed and then pour in the sauce and heat it up.
Swap double cream for plant-based cream. Nutritional yeast or vegan Parmesan instead of Parmesan is a good swap too. The good news is that squash blends nicely and turns quite creamy, even without cream and cheese.
Yes, roast cubes at 200°C for 25–30 minutes. Then blend as instructed.
Freeze the blended sauce (without pasta) for up to 2 months. Defrost overnight. Then, warm gently in a pan with a splash of water or stock to loosen.
Other recipes you might enjoy:
If you love pasta and butternut squash, you should also try my pumpkin risotto, my beef short rib ragu, my butternut squash crispy gratin or chilli + butternut squash soup. You could also make cafe de paris butter – that would be delicious.
Easy Dinner Recipes
Spaghetti Alla Nerano: Stanley Tucci’s Favourite Courgette Pasta
Easy Pasta Recipes
Trofie Pasta with Bursting Tomatoes, Chickpea & Mozzarella
Easy Pasta Recipes
Creamy Sausage Pasta (Pasta alla Norcina)
Easy Pasta Recipes
Boursin Tomato Pasta
If you tried this Butternut Pasta or any other recipe on the site, please do leave a rating or comment and let us know how it went!
Creamy Butternut Pasta with Crispy Sage
Ingredients
- 1 whole butternut squash, about 2lb/1kg
- 1 red onion, quartered
- 1 large head of garlic, halved horizontally
- 120 ml double cream, heavy cream
- 40 g Parmesan, finely grated (plus extra to serve)
- 30 g butter
- 8 fresh sage leaves
- Olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 350 g pasta of your choice, rigatoni, fusilli or penne work well
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C (170°C fan). Halve the butternut squash lengthways, scoop out the seeds, and score the flesh lightly with a knife. Place it flesh-side up in a baking tray.
- Drizzle the cut garlic head with olive oil, wrap it in foil, and add it to the tray.
- Roast for 45–50 minutes, until the squash is very tender. After 25-30 mins, add the onion to the tray, tossing in the oil on the tray.
- Scoop out the roasted squash flesh and place it in a blender with the roasted onions. Squeeze in the soft roasted garlic cloves.
- Add the cream and blend until silky smooth, adding a splash of pasta water if needed. The sauce should be thick but pourable. It must be silky smooth so if it’s not, keep adding liquid and blending until it’s velvety. Season well with salt and pepper.
- Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the pasta until al dente.
- In a separate large frying pan, heat over medium heat and melt the butter. Add the sage leaves and fry until the butter foams and turns golden brown.
- Once golden, remove the crispy sage leaves from the pan and set aside on a plate with a sheet of kitchen paper to absorb the excess butter.
- Pour half the brown butter into a small bowl for later and leave the rest in the pan. Add the drained pasta to the pan with the brown butter and toss well.
- Add the butternut squash sauce, most of the Parmesan, and toss to coat the pasta well. You may need to add a splash of pasta water to loosen it.
- Divide the pasta between bowls. Top with crispy sage leaves, more grated Parmesan, and drizzle over the reserved brown butter.
- The video below will help with this recipe.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This creamy butternut squash pasta is so delicious, it’s sweet but rich, and I drizzle it with sage brown butter at the end. So good.