The secret to a great pasta dish is the play between textures and tastes. Here, the velvety texture of the squash acts as a counterpoint to the browned, salty crumbles of sausage. Finished with a dusting of Parmesan — perfecto!
INGREDIENTS:
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 3 cups peeled and diced butternut squash
- 1 small red onion, diced
- 12 ounces spicy Italian sausage, casings removed
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 bunch Swiss chard, thick stems removed and chopped
- 1 teaspoon red chili flakes
- Salt and pepper
- 8 ounces rigatoni
- ¼ cup creme fraiche
- ⅓ cup grated Parmesan, plus extra
DIRECTIONS:
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. Add chopped butternut squash and sauté until lightly browned, about 6-7 minutes. The butternut squash should be getting tender but won’t be completely cooked.
- Add chopped red onion and sauté until tender, about 4 minutes. Add sausage, breaking it up into smaller chunks. Sauté until sausage is browned, about 3 minutes.
- Add garlic, Swiss chard, and red chili flakes. Continue to cook until chard is wilted, another 3 minutes. Season mixture with salt and pepper and keep warm.
- While vegetables and sausage are cooking, bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Cook rigatoni until al dente, about 8 minutes. Drain pasta, reserving ¼ cup of the pasta water.
- Immediately add cooked rigatoni to sausage mixture along with ¼ cup reserved pasta water, creme fraiche, and grated Parmesan.
- Stir to coat pasta in the sauce and continue to cook for 1-2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle extra Parmesan on top and serve immediately.