Fu-silly: The Great Pasta Debate

I love pasta and I don’t care who knows it!! There are naysayers out there that suggest too much carbs equals weight gain.  Carbs, schmarbs! Too much of anything, if eaten consistently when the body is past the point of being full, will put on weight.  Don’t blame the carbs people! If eating intuitively and following your internal signals of hunger and satiety, you can have that pasta, rice, bread or any other food product for that matter (provided, of course, you don’t have an allergy to said product).

As my husband, Alan, and I were going through some archived recipes for last week’s meal planning we found this hidden gem – Roasted Squash, Sausage and Sage Fusilli.  The original recipe seemed to be missing something in the details so we set out to make it a Pitman original and started brainstorming ideas.  We decided on a Sage Pesto to add to it.  Also, I never would have thought of putting cubes of roasted squash into a dish. I’ve always pureed and mixed it with something else.  But, Oh-My-Goodness! The combination of flavours and textures was pure HEAVEN! In the throws of us preparing and eating it, I forgot to take pics so you’ll just have to take my word for it.

Here is what we came up with:

The Pesto

• 1 c. sage
• 1 c. parsley
• 1/2 c. walnuts
• 1/4 c. parmesan
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1/2 tsp each of salt and pepper
• 1/4 c. olive oil

1. Place all ingredients (except for olive oil), in food processor.  Pulse for 30 seconds.
2. With food processor on low speed, slowly pour in the olive oil.
3. Turn to high speed until ingredients are well blended.
4. Reserve for later.

 The Pasta, Meat and Veg

• 1 medium roasted butternut squash
• Olive oil
• 3/4 lb mild or hot Italian sausage
• 1 onion (chopped)
• 2 cups cremini mushrooms (sliced)
• 1 large red pepper (julienned)
• 1 package of fusilli (we used Catelli Healthy Harvest)
• Freshly grated parmesan

1. Slice butternut squash in half, discard seeds, brush lightly with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.   Roast in oven set at 400 F, for approximately 40 minutes.  Remove from oven and allow to cool.  Then, remove skin from the squash and cut into bite-sized cubes.
2. Cook pasta according to package directions.
3. If using sausage, remove them from their casings and slice.  You could go vegetarian with this dish if sausage isn’t your thing or try ham instead.
4. Heat a large deep frying pan with a splash of olive oil, set at medium-high heat.  Cook through until no longer pink in colour.
5. Add onion, mushrooms and red pepper to pan.  Continue to cook for 5 minutes or until veggies start to soften.
6. Mix butternut squash cubes, cooked pasta and sage pesto in frying pan with the rest of the ingredients.
7. Serve up with a sprinkle or two of freshly grated parmesan.

Foodie Fridays is a weekly blog series from Michelle Pitman, attempting to remove the stigma and the labeling of food that tastes good as being bad for you; to show how supportive choices can incorporate all categories of food and that balanced eating means you are satisfying your physical needs as well as the emotional ones.   Bon Appetit!!