So my mom used to make this baked alfredo dish with roasted, caramelized butternut squash & bacon when I was growing up and it was a top 5 meal for me.
& in this era of my life I'm all about recreating the recipes that make me feel the warm fuzzies while making sure my digestion stays on track.
Which means I had to adjust this recipe slightly.
The base is now made out of cashews & my own special little twist...roasted garlic.
There is also no baking time here which means this recipe is on the table in 40 minutes.
& I highly recommend adding some parmesan cheese on top if your digestion is capable.
Also, I just have to add that there has been something so healing for me in the process of taking my family favorite meals and making them accommodating for all.
The love, the memories and the conversations surrounding these foods.
Man food is incredible!
Enjoy!
VIDEO
PRINTABLE RECIPE FILE
INGREDIENTS
1 butternut squash (~1 1/2 cups), diced
one bulb (head) of garlic
3 tablespoons avocado oil
1 cup water
1 1/4 cups cashews
1/2 an onion, diced
juice of half a lemon
2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 cup pasta water (or chicken broth)
12 oz pasta (we used gluten free rotini by jovial brand)
1/2 pound of bacon, fried crispy for topping
chives for garnish
DIRECITONS
Preheat oven to 425°F. Peel and dice the butternut squash. Add it to a baking sheet and use 1 1/2 tablespoons avocado oil plus a generous couple pinches of salt to coat the squash.
Slice the top off the bulb of garlic, place in tin foil, pour 1/2 tablespoon oil over top, close tight. Add it to the baking sheet with the squash. Bake for 30 minutes, tossing the squash halfway through.
While the squash is roasting, prepare your bacon and start your noodles.
In a dutch oven, add some oil and sauté the diced onion for about 5 minutes. Take pan off heat.
In a high powered blender, blend cashews with water. Then add the sautéed onions, lemon, nutritional yeast, salt and pepper. Give it a quick blend.
Add the alfredo sauce to the pan you sautéed the onions in. Do not turn on the heat yet. The warm pan will allow the sauce to thicken but heat will harden it.
Once the noodles are done, reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water. Turn the alfredo pan on a simmer setting and add the pasta water to create your desired consistency (anywhere between 1/4 -1/2 cup). Add the noodles and toss to coat. Remove from heat.
Serve and top with the squash, bacon, chives and some extra salt. Enjoy!
NOTES
Cashews are not salty so make sure you salt before serving.
Parmesan cheese is great over top if your digestion can handle it.
Make sure the alfredo sauce stays at a very low heat over the stove when adding the water. You want to warm it, but not "cook" it. Nuts do turn into "cheese" when heated at higher temps.
Can be made vegan by omitting the bacon!
Hope you all are having a happy day!
As always, feel free to reach out whenever.
Like, comment and share this post.
It really helps me out more than you know.
Thanks for being here. đ«¶đŒ
xoxo
Kirsten âïž
