Butternut Squash Pasta

We have has a recipe for this delight before but this uses a few different ingredients and its has recently been KID APPROVED!
This was a big risk at my house because my kids don’t enjoy squash and they love the rare occasions that I make Macaroni and Cheese. But what they don’t know won’t hurt them right? So when they were not home I made a big pan of squash pasta and presented it as mac ‘n cheese. They never asked, and I never told them. The all claimed this was the cheesiest one yet, and it was so good. Funny thing is, there was no cheese at all. Win for the squash!! You need to try this, you can make it ahead for one of those busy nights when you just want to re-heat something before you run out the door, again!

Ingredients
1 cup roasted butternut squash.
½ cup soaked raw cashews
½ cup diced onion
1-2 cloves minced garlic
1 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. arrowroot powder
1 cup of unsweetened almond or coconut milk
5-6 tbsp. nutritional yeast
Salt and pepper to taste
Sprinkle of paprika
Cooked pasta, I used Kamut flour pasta, but gluten free will work too. (Approx. 16 oz uncooked)
Gluten free bread crumbs (optional)
*can add diced ham or bacon to make it a complete meal*

How to make it:
First I cut the butternut squash in half, covered with avocado oil and roasted for 45 mins at 400 F.
Soak ½ cup of cashews in water.
When squash is cooked scoop out seeds and put 1 generous cup of squash in food processor.
While waiting cook 1 pkg of noodles.
Add in your drained cashews and puree until smooth.
In a pot melt butter, add onions and garlic, allowing to soften slightly. Mix in arrowroot powder to thicken. To this add your almond milk, nutritional yeast, salt, pepper, and paprika. Once mixture thickens remove from stove and add to squash mixture in food processor. Mix sauce together to form a yummy cream.
In a lasagna pan, add cooked noodles and squash mixture. When completely mixed, sprinkle with gluten free bread crumbs and bake at 350 F for 30 mins. Serve as a meal, or a side dish.

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