Ingredients

Pasta with Spicy Sausage, Baby Spinach and Creamy Butternut Sauce

Skinnytaste.com

Servings: 5 • Size: 1 1/4 cups • Old Points: 7 pts • Points+: 9

Calories: 362 • Fat: 8 g • Carb: 55 g • Fiber: 5 g • Protein: 20 g • Sugar: 1 g

Sodium: 419 mg (without salt)

Ingredients:

11 oz (4 links) spicy chicken Italian sausage

1 lb butternut squash, peeled and diced

1 tbsp light butter

10 oz casarecce, or pasta of your choice

1/4 cup shallots, minced

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups baby spinach, roughly chopped

2 tbsp fresh shaved parmesan cheese

4 sage leaves, sliced thin

kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Preparation

Directions:

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add butternut squash and cook until soft. Remove squash with a slotted spoon and place in a blender, blend until smooth.

Add pasta to the boiling water and cook according to package directions for al dente, reserving at least 1 cup of the pasta water before draining.

Meanwhile, in a large deep non-stick skillet, sauté sausage over medium heat until browned, breaking up with a spoon as it cooks. When cooked through, set aside on a plate.

Reduce heat to medium-low and melt the butter, sauté the shallots and garlic until soft and golden, about 5 - 6 minutes. Add pureed butternut squash, season with with salt and fresh cracked pepper and add a little of the reserved pasta water (I used about 1 cup) to thin out the sauce to your liking. Add baby spinach and stir in parmesan cheese and sage.