Butternut Squash Pasta with Alfredo Sauce
This healthy grain and dairy free spin on pasta with alfredo sauce is so comforting. Butternut squash noodles are used in place of pasta and smothered in a creamy 3-ingredient cashew alfredo sauce that’s vegan and dairy free. This 30 minute pasta dish is perfect for a quick and easy weeknight meal.
I have died and gone to pasta heaven. This recipe is SO GOOD!
I have been really hesitant to make a cashew based cream sauce for pasta due to the number of overly thick and heavy ones I have tried. I decided to finally bite the bullet and try and make an alfredo sauce that is both creamy and light.
This sauce completely blows my mind! I had a list of about 8 ingredients I was planning on adding in to get the flavour and consistency right, but had to stop after 3, because it was absolutely perfect! That’s right, just 3 ingredients!!!
This is one of those recipes that I would happily serve to a less health conscious eater and be confident that they would enjoy it. It really closely resembles all of the delicious flavours of a traditional alfredo, but is so much healthier!
Butternut squash pasta is the perfect base for this cashew alfredo sauce. The noodles are tender but not mushy and add a delicious richness in flavour to the dish. When buying butternut squash for pasta, look for one with a long straight top half as this is the only part that you can spiralize.
If you can find already spiralized raw butternut squash noodles in the grocery store then I would recommend using them to make life a whole lot easier. I love the rich flavour of butternut squash and use them regularly in my cooking, but if you are not on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet the sweet potato noodles would also work well in this recipe.
Although the butternut squash pasta and Cashew Alfredo Sauce are wonderful on their own, the peas and crisp prosciutto are icing on the cake. The peas add a delicious burst of freshness to each bite while the prosciutto adds a crisp saltiness that makes this dish even more addicting. Pancetta or bacon would also work well in place of the prosciutto, or can be replaced with a pinch of salt for a vegetarian/vegan option.
Here are a few other veggie noodle recipes that you might enjoy!
- Butternut Squash Noodles with Tahini Lemon Sauce
- Thai Curry Noodle Soup
- Asian Chicken & Noodle Soup
- Creamy Tomato Sauce with Zucchini Noodles
- Zucchini Noodles with Pesto, Prosciutto & Pine Nuts
If you make this recipe let me know in the comment section below, I would love to hear what you think or take a photo and tag me (@everylastbite_) on Instagram, I love seeing your photos!
Butternut Squash Pasta with Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 Butternut Squash or you can buy pre cut noodles (approx 5 cups noodles)
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/4 cup chopped bacon
- 2/3 cup cashews, soaked in boiling water for 10 minutes
- 1 clove garlic
- 1/3 cup almond milk
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1/4 cup frozen peas or 1 cup spinach
- 1 tbsp parsley chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (395 degrees Fahrenheit)
- Peel the butternut squash and spiralize into noodles or use a julienne peeler to cut thin noodles
- Place the butternut squash pasta on a baking sheet and toss with olive oil. Bake in the oven for 8 minutes until al dent.
- Combine the cashews, garlic, almond milk, salt and pepper in a blender and blend until smooth. Add a splash of water if the sauce is too thick.
- Fry the bacon in a skillet until crisp.
- Pour the sauce into the skillet along with the frozen peas or spinach and heat until warm. Add in the butternut squash pasta and toss to coat in the sauce. Top with chopped parsley before serving.
Nutrition
Looks yummy, making this tomorrow.
OMG! This recipe is no joke! So freaking delish! and SUPER easy! I love that it was such a hearty “pasta” dish and tasted amazing! Also love the versatility of this dish. I change up the veg and protein all the time and it’s always a hit!
Haha so happy you like it!
This was AMAZING! This is my second round of Whole 30 and this recipe is by far my favorite recipe that I’ve used while on Whole 30. I substituted chicken sausage for bacon (I’m on week 1 so still very hungry) and to add volume added sautéed mushrooms and spinach (instead of peas like your recipe mentioned). It was incredible. I can’t wait to make it again!
Made this tonight, delish! I sautéed some onion and red pepper and added that to my blender mix. So tasty! When I make it next time I will for sure buy the prepackaged squash noodles! That was work!!
If you can buy precut butternut that will cut this down to a 15 minute recipe, so fast and easy!
Could you please provide nutritional information. In the recipes I have found using butternut squash ( which I love) the high fat low carb of a keto diet don’t work. Too many carbs. I am still searching though.
Unfortunately I dont calculate nutrition and prefer to stick to simply using real ingredients, but if you are looking for the nutritional info I recommend trying the App RecipeIQ, its free and all you have to do is take a photo of the recipe and it calculates everything for you in seconds. Here is a link to it https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/recipeiq-recipe-calculator/id1213761554
What does one do when they have to be grain free but are allergic to nuts as well? Coconut is more mildly aggravating than others. Almond and cashews are 2 big ones. Peanuts (though not nuts) are the worst.
Hmm thats a tough one, are you able to eat sunflower seeds?
Because it is labeled vegan what do you sub out for the bacon or is it good without it. Thanks!
You could sub the bacon for sauteed mushrooms
This sauce is delicious! I tried it a couple of times on butternut squash, but didn’t really care for how strong the squash flavor came through. Switched to spaghetti squash and it was AMAZING. Thanks for the recipe!!!
How long would you cook frozen butternut squash noodles?! Making this tonight!
Made this last night and my boyfriend and I both LOVED it! I should have added more water to the sauce (did not add quite enough to thin it out) but added a little more almond milk once it was in the skillet and got much closer to the desired consistency 🙂 look forward to making again!