recipes

Butternut Squash and Spinach Pasta Bake

This is a lovely colourful bake, full of flavour and is a perfect lunch main course or vegetarian option. Depending on what I have in the fridge, I often replace the butternut with sweet potatoes and add some red and yellow peppers.

Ingredients

• 700g butternut squash, peeled and diced
• ½ tsp coriander seeds
• 1 tbsp Roma Extra Virgin Olive oil
• 200g ricotta cheese
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 125ml cream
• 200g Roma Cellentani pasta
• 80g parmesan cheese, grated (60g for mixture and 20g for sprinkling on top)
• 30g fresh breadcrumbs
• 250g baby leaf spinach

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 200°C / Gas 6. Grease a 20cm square baking dish.
2. Wilt the spinach and set aside.
3. Place the coriander seeds in a dry pan and toast then place in a pestle and mortar and crush.
4. Place the butternut in a roasting pan and drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle coriander over the butternut. Roast for 18 – 20 minutes until just tender. Remove from the oven. Reduce the oven temperature to 180°C / Gas 4.
5. Cook the pasta in a large saucepan according to the directions on the packet.
6. Drain.
7. Combine the ricotta, egg and 60g parmesan in a large bowl. Stir in the spinach, pasta and butternut. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon into baking dish. Sprinkle over the remaining parmesan and breadcrumbs.
8. Place in the oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until set and golden.
9. Serve with a green salad.