Butternut Squash & Sage Sauce With Fresh Orecchiette

Before you begin...

Get all your ingredients and equipment ready

Skim through these steps, then wash your fruit and veg

Note: Equipment and pan sizes vary. Make sure you cook food thoroughly (even if it takes you a little longer than 10 min)

Now, let's get started!

Boil a kettle

Heat a large, wide-based pan (preferably non-stick) over a medium-high heat and add 30g [45g] [60g] butter

Swirl the butter around the pan as it melts, and cook for 3-5 min or until the butter starts to brown and smell nutty, then remove the pan from the heat – this is your brown butter

Add your butternut squash cubes to a heatproof bowl

Cover the bowl with cling film and pierce a few holes in the top

Put the bowl in the microwave and cook for 3-4 min or until the squash cubes are fork-tender

Add your fresh orecchiette to a pot of boiled water with a generous pinch of salt and bring to the boil over a high heat

Cook the orecchiette for 4-6 min or until cooked with a slight bite

Once done, drain the orecchiette, reserving 100ml [130ml] [175ml] of the starchy pasta water

Heat a small dry pan over a medium heat

Once hot, add your walnuts and cook for 2-3 min or until toasted and lightly golden

Tip: Watch them like a hawk to make sure they don't burn!

Meanwhile, peel and slice (don't chop!) your garlic

Strip your sage leaves from their stems, discard the stems

Return the brown butter to a medium-high heat, add the sliced garlic, sage leaves and softened butternut squash cubes with a pinch of salt and cook for 2-3 min further or until the garlic is fragrant and the sage leaves are starting to crisp

Once fragrant, add the drained orecchiette with your vegetable stock mix, half your grated Italian hard cheese (save the rest for garnish!) and the reserved starchy pasta water and give everything a good mix up – this is your butternut squash & sage sauce with fresh orecchiette