Equipment
- 1 large deep oven-proof skillet or casserole baking dish
- 1 flat baking tray for roasting butternut squash
- 1 frying pan or skillet to cook mushrooms and to make the sauce
My favourite veggie pasta bake filled with vegetables like roasted butternut squash, mushrooms, peppers, and spinach, paired with a delicious tomato sauce and baked with feta and Cheddar cheeses. Comforting dinner that is also nutrient-dense.
Ingredients
Winter Squash/Pumpkin
- 3.5 cups butternut squash diced or kabocha squash
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
Mushrooms
- 3 cups sliced mushrooms about 200 grams / 7 oz
- 1.5 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 tsp salt
For tomato spinach sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion chopped finely, about 1 cup
- 1 red bell pepper diced, about 1 cup
- 3 large cloves garlic minced or grated
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/3 chili flakes
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 cup sun-dried tomato strips chopped finely, used the ones stored in oil
- 1.5 cups tomato passata aka tomato sauce or marinara sauce (about 400 grams)
- 2 cups baby spinach leaves
- 1/2 cup pasta water when mixing in the pasta
Pasta
- 6 cups pasta such as fusilli or penne, about 400 g/ 13 oz
- 1 tsp salt
Cheeses
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
- 2 cups grated Cheddar or Mozzarella or mix
Instructions
- Prepare roasted squash. Preheat oven to 400 F/200 C. Peel and cut the squash into large cubes. Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Roast on a large, flat baking tray for 25-30 minutes, until lovely and soft.
- Cook the mushrooms. Slice the mushrooms. Saute in a large pan with a little olive oil and salt over medium-high heat for 7-8 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes, until golden brown.
- Cook the pasta. While the above is happening, cook the pasta until just al dente. I like to reduce the cooking time by 1 minute as the pasta will continue to cook while baking and you don't want pasta that's too soft. Once pasta is cooked, reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water and strain the rest.
- Make the tomato sauce. Add olive oil, onions and red peppers to another pan and saute over medium-high heat for 7-8 minutes, stirring every 2 minutes. You want the veggies to get soft and almost caramelized.
- Add the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, salt, pepper, chilli, paprika and stir through. Follow with tomato sauce and cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Wilt the spinach. Finally, add the baby spinach and stir through; cook for 1-2 minutes until wilted into the sauce. Taste for seasoning.
- Combine the pasta. Add the pre-cooked pasta to the sauce along with the mushrooms and most of the roasted butternut squash. Add the feta cheese and stir through. Place any remaining butternut squash pieces on top and finish the dish with grated Cheddar or Mozzarella.
- Ready to bake. Preheat the oven to 400 F/ 200 C (this can be done while you're assembling the pasta if making everything at once). Bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese has melted and golden brown crust has formed.
- Making-ahead. You can store pre-made veggie pasta in a baking dish overnight. Bring to room temperature (10-15 minutes out of the fridge) before baking.
Notes
Nutrition is for 6 average servings but this could serve 4 if extra hungry!
Nutrition
Calories: 596kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 24g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 10g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 10g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 1387mg | Potassium: 1246mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 12g | Vitamin A: 11195IU | Vitamin C: 57mg | Calcium: 419mg | Iron: 4mg
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