Butternut Squash Noodles Alfredo

I’ve been craving vegetables lately, and that is a little odd.  Although I was a vegetarian for a year or two, (many, many years ago), I can honestly say that vegetables are not anywhere on my cravings list (I won’t lie, that is the list that starts and ends with chocolate.  And wine.)  My local grocery store has started carrying spiralized vegetables and every time I go into the store I’m drawn to their amazing colors…and then I keep walking.

Truth be told I even OWN a spiralizer.  And it’s never been out of the box.  I own a cookbook to go with it (that I’ve never opened).  All of that changed this weekend with these Butternut Squash Noodles Alfredo.

I bet you thought I was going to say that I used that spiralizer.  Nope.  But I did finally buy some of those some pre-spiralized butternut squash “noodles” and decided that this was the weekend I was going to make some comfort food out of them.  And I did.

Ah-mazing.

I love heavy pasta.  I love thick, rich sauces.  (My waistline doesn’t, but I won’t bore you with those ugly details). I figured maybe taking pasta out of the equation could “healthy” them up a little bit.  Maybe.

Healthy or not, this Butternut Squash Noodles Alfredo is the bomb.

Between the amazing color, the rich, creamy sauce and the salty pancetta, it satisfied my craving.  More than satisfied it.  And even the hubs, who is jury out on most vegetables, thought this was awesome.  In fact he was bummed that there were no leftovers.

You could easily make this vegetarian by leaving out the pancetta, so if that is your thing, by all means leave it out.  But if the word pancetta makes your heart beat just a little bit faster, then you’ll find it adds a great flavor.  I also intentionally make my sauce thick so it will stick to the “noodles”, but that is a matter of personal preference.  A tablespoon of sauce, or two, will be enough for a large bowl of butternut squash “noodles”, so don’t worry about all of the butter and the cream-you’ll find it’s worth it.

Now I’m looking for more spiralizer inspiration.  I’m planning on actually taking my spiralizer out of the box and trying some new things.  Tell me what you’ve made with spiralized “noodles” in the comments below!

5 from 2 votes

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Butternut Squash Noodles Alfredo

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4 servings

Author With Two Spoons

Ingredients

• 24 ounces butternut squash "noodles" 3-4 cups
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 4 Tablespoons butter
• 1 cup heavy cream + 2 Tablespoons heavy cream divided
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 4 ounces pancetta diced
• 2 Tablespoons italian parsley finely chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Spread out the "noodles" onto two baking sheets covered in parchment paper.
3. Roast the "noodles" for 5-7 minutes until they have softened.
4. In a small skillet, on medium high heat, saute pancetta until crispy.
5. Remove pancetta to a small paper towel lined plate.
6. In a medium sized saucepan, melt butter on medium high, approximately 3-4 minutes.
7. Turn heat to medium and add 1 cup cream.
8. Heat until large bubbles appear.
9. Add salt and stir, heating until mixture thickens, approximately 5-8 minutes.
10. Add garlic and parmesan cheese, stir until cheese fully melted.
11. Remove from heat.
12. If too thick add 2 Tablespoons of cream (or until desired consistency).
13. Divide "noodles" into 4 bowls, add 1-2 Tablespoons of alfredo sauce and garnish each bowl with 1/4th of the pancetta and chopped parsely.

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