This butternut squash pasta transforms simple ingredients into a luxurious weeknight dinner.
The oven does most of the work—roasting the squash until its flavors intensify while you prepare the ricotta and parmesan sauce.
With just a handful of ingredients, this easy pasta recipe delivers a restaurant-worthy result that will have everyone asking for seconds.
Table of Contents
Why you will love butternut squash pasta
This easy pasta recipe is as comforting as pasta al limone and pasta bake; my Nonna Lidias ricotta-parmesan sauce is the source of these recipes.
Butternut squash transforms in the oven, developing a sweetness that stovetop cooking can’t match.
This dish celebrates the creamy texture of butternut squash, similar to butternut squash ravioli and butternut squash and carrot soup.
The vegetarian recipe is beginner-friendly, needing minimal prep while delivering rich autumn flavors.
The silky ricotta and salty parmesan blend melts into the roasted butternut squash, creating a luxuriously creamy, high-protein vegetarian sauce.
This cozy combination brings warmth to chilly autumn evenings, making it a comforting choice for Halloween gatherings and Thanksgiving feasts.
Similar to cauliflower Alfredo and roasted pepper pasta, blending a vegetable is a clever way to sneak these vitamin-rich veggies into your dinner rotation,
Ingredients
Quantities are in the recipe box at the bottom of the page.
Butternut squash
You can buy whole butternut squash, peel it, and chop it yourself, or purchase pre-cut butternut squash to save time.
You can substitute pumpkin or another winter squash for butternut squash. To add flavor, roast the squash with crushed garlic powder or clove and a few sage leaves.
Pasta
Any pasta shape works for this recipe. We use rigatoni, farfalle, fusilli, rotini, penne, and even long pasta shapes such as spaghetti and linguine.
To make the recipe gluten-free, use gluten-free pasta.
Salt and pepper
We use sea salt or kosher salt to add taste and black pepper for the aroma. The butternut squash sauce can take quite a bit of black pepper; freshly ground is best.
Ricotta
Both regular ricotta cheese and our homemade dairy-free ricotta work well for this recipe.
Ricotta helps soften the sweet butternut squash flavor, making the creamy butternut squash pasta more balanced and fulfilling.
Parmesan
Good quality parmesan cheese adds a complex, savory depth to pasta dishes. Its robust, nutty flavor is complemented by salty and umami notes.
You can leave the parmesan cheese out or substitute it with vegan cheese if you are vegan.
Pistachio nuts and thyme leaves
For a pleasant aroma, we garnish the plate with toasted pistachio nuts for a little nutty crunch and fresh thyme leaves.
You can substitute walnuts for pistachios or omit nuts altogether and sprinkle with parmesan.
Other fresh herbs that work well are sage and parsley.
How to make butternut squash rigatoni
Step 1: roast the butternut squash
Preheat the oven to 430°F or 220°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Peel and seed the butternut squash, then cut it into 1-inch cubes.
Add it to the baking sheet with olive oil, salt, black pepper, and garlic powder.
Toss and bake for 30 minutes, until completely soft and slightly browned.
Step 2: make the sauce
Transfer the roasted butternut squash to a food processor (or blender) and add the ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, a few thyme leaves, and water.
Blend until you have a smooth sauce, then transfer it into a large pan.
Step 3: toss in the pasta
Boil the pasta al dente in a large pot with heavily salted water.
Reserve one cup of pasta water, drain the pasta, and add it to the pan.
Toss on medium heat for about a minute, adding as much reserved pasta water as needed to make the dish creamy.
Optionally, serve the butternut squash pasta with fresh thyme leaves, pistachio nuts, and grated parmesan cheese.
Serving suggestions
Louise and I love to serve creamy pasta dishes with mostly raw vegetable sides. Find inspiration in seasonal produce, and try:
Variations
Dairy-free butternut squash pasta
To make this recipe dairy-free, you have two options:
- Omit the ricotta and parmesan cheese for a naturally sweet, lighter butternut sauce.
- Use your favorite vegan cheese alternatives – many brands make dairy–free ricotta and parmesan-style products.
We recommend garnishing with toasted sage leaves and walnuts. This combination adds a beautiful savory crunch that perfectly complements the creamy squash sauce.
Storage
Refrigerator: store leftover butternut squash pasta in an airtight container for up to two days. Also, store some reserved pasta water that you’ll use to warm up the pasta on day two.
The pasta sauce will inevitably thicken after a few hours in the fridge. Warm it with a dash of water in a pan or microwave for two minutes to make it creamy again.
Freezer: this recipe is not freezer-friendly.
Similar recipes
BUTTERNUT SQUASH RECIPES: roasted butternut squash, butternut squash soup, butternut squash salad, stuffed butternut squash.
EASY PASTA RECIPES: Roasted red pepper pasta, 20-minute broccoli pasta, lemon pasta, mushroom alfredo, cauliflower alfredo
For many more dinner ideas, check out our mains category page.
Butternut Squash Pasta
Equipment
- Food processor or blender
Ingredients
- ¾ pound rigatoni pasta or any other
BUTTERNUT SQUASH PASTA SAUCE
- ¾ pound butternut squash peeled and chopped
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
FOR THE SAUCE
- ⅔ cup ricotta cheese
- 1 cup parmesan cheese
- 1 cup water
- ¼ teaspoon salt or more to taste
- 2 twists black pepper
GARNISH
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tablespoon pistachio nuts
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 430°F or 220°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.Peel and seed the butternut squash, then cut it into 1-inch cubes.Add it to the baking sheet with olive oil, salt, and garlic powder.Toss and bake for 30 minutes, until completely soft and slightly browned.
- Transfer the roasted butternut squash to a food processor (or blender) and add the ricotta cheese, parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, thyme leaves, and water.Blend until you have a smooth sauce, then transfer it into a large pan.
- Cook the pasta al dente in a large pot with salted boiling water. Reserve one cup of pasta water, drain the pasta and toss it in the sauce.Stir for half a minute on medium heat. Add some reserved pasta water if necessary.
- Serve the butternut squash pasta with fresh thyme laves, pistachio nuts, and optionally a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese.
Video
The print function gives a different recipe with no instructions.
Gordon, thanks so much for your feedback – we fixed the technical error so now you should be able to see everything.
All the best.
My new favorite pasta dish!! And I have made tonsssss. Thank you for this lovely recipe!
Hi Sarah, oh I’m so very happy you liked this pasta, thanks for your kind comment! Enjoy your Wednesday. Cheers, Louise
Video shows ricotta being added to the food processor, but it is not in the written recipe. How much to add?
Hi Kathy, you are absolutely right! The pictures and instructions are now updated to reflect the video. Thanks so much for your message. Cheers, Nico
Hi! I’m thinking of making this for Thanksgiving. Can I make the butternut squash sauce the day before? I would make the pasta on thanksgiving Day.
Hi Josephine, yes you certainly can make this sauce the day before. Store it in an airtight container and be mindful that it will thicken up a little in the fridge. To make it nice and creamy when you mix it with pasta on Thanksgiving Day, simply save 1-2 cups of pasta water and mix it in until you reach your desired consistency. Have an amazing Thanksgiving! Cheers, Nico
Great Idea! Being a bit in a hurry, I put the butternut into a nonsticky pan and did it with a parttime cover. As well I added 2 Eating Spoons Honey to getit nicely caramaliesd together with some raisins.
Added a slice of Gorgonzola and chopped salvia. As we don’t get Ricotta I used Greecjogur und some Soycream for cooking.
In the end I added some finely chopped raisins and walnuts and parmesan.
The sweetness of the caramel and the raisins together with the salvia and the very slight taste of the gorgonzola as a bit of contrast made it to one of our favorite salsas straightaway.
I never would’ve tried using butternut to make a pasta salsa, Thanks!