Fettuccine alfredo gets a fall upgrade with lots of tender baby spinach and a luxuriously creamy butternut squash alfredo sauce that’s lighter on the calories!
We’ve entered into the fall territory where there’s squash being thrown into everything. Butternut squash alfredo included.
From your soups to your fettuccine alfredo, show me ONE area of your life that wouldn’t be improved by a little squash action.
Plus they double as fall decor. You can’t really ask a humble gourd much more than that. ??
This baked fettuccine is going to tick ALL the cozy food boxes for you. This is just the time of the year when cheesy, creamy dinners are a necessity, ya know??
This spinach butternut squash alfredo baked fettuccine features the following –>
- Impossibly creamy butternut alfredo sauce. Made with roasted butternut and a traditional alfredo sauce blended up together. Plus more squash cubes in the pasta for added texture!
- Wilty baby spinach. Gives this creamy goodness some much needed green.
- Fettuccine pasta. Which you can definitely sub out for any other pasta if that’s all ya got on hand!
- Crispy, golden breadcrumb topping. You can’t have a creamy baked pasta without breadcrumbs on top, case closed.
Let’s run through some of the components! –>
Butternut Squash Alfredo Sauce
Roasting the butternut squash is the first order of business. Grab your sharpest knife and break down a small-ish squash into about 3 cups 1-inch cubes.
Toss the cubes with a little olive oil + s&p and they’re ready for the oven. Let ’em roast at a high temp of 400F 15-20 minutes until they’re easily pierced with a knife or fork.
From there, it’s time to start building the sauce. We’re going to make a basic alfredo from a butter/flour roux, a little half and half, milk, Parmesan, and a grating of fresh nutmeg (KEY for building flavor – don’t skip the nutmeg!)
Set 1 cup of the roasted butternut squash cubes aside and give the remaining squash + alfredo sauce a whirl in the blender until smooth.
Then return to the stove and stir in the spinach + reserved squash cubes until the spinach is wilted. It’s gonna be lusciously creamy, cheesy, and goooood.
Baked Fettuccine
As I mentioned before, you can definitely use any shape of pasta if that’s what you have on hand. I will say, however, I definitely prefer fettuccine for this particular recipe. It just holds the sauce perfectly.
Fold al dente cooked fettuccine pasta into the sauce and then spread it all in your sturdiest casserole dish.
Then go crazy with the breadcrumbs + a little sprinkle of herby parsley, and heck, why not more Parmesan if you’re feelin it??
Bake until bubbly then DIG IN while it’s hot, creamy, and cheesy. ♥
I have a lot of comfort food favorites this time of year but wow, I think this alfredo just got bumped to the top of the list.
It’s pure INSANITY what the butternut squash does to the sauce! I’d just drink it if pasta wasn’t such a good sauce vehicle.
Guarantee you’re gonna love it. Guarantee if you don’t, you should send it on over my way.
MORE creamy, cheesy dinners you should be adding to your dinner rotation!
Spinach Butternut Squash Alfredo Baked Fettuccine
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Ingredients
- 3 cups fresh butternut squash cubes (1-in)
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup half and half cream
- 1/2 cup 2% milk
- 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (preferably freshly ground)
- 2 cups baby spinach
- 12 oz fettuccine pasta, cooked according to package instructions and kept warm
- 1/2 cup dry seasoned breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoons fresh minced parsley
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a medium baking sheet and lay squash in a single layer. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper to taste. Roast squash at 400F 15-20 minutes until soft and tender. Set aside.
- In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt butter then add garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk in flour until smooth and cook until a light golden brown.
- Slowly whisk in half in half and milk and bring sauce to a low simmer over medium heat until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and add Parmesan and nutmeg.
- Reserve 1 cup squash cubes and set aside. Place remaining squash cubes in a high speed blender and pour sauce over top. Blend sauce on medium speed until completely smooth.
- Pour sauce back into pan and stir spinach and remaining squash cubes in until spinach is wilted. Fold in cooked fettuccine noodles until evenly coated in sauce.
- Grease a 9×13 baking pan and spread fettuccine alfredo in pan. Sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Bake fettuccine at 375F 20-25 minutes until bubbly and golden. Sprinkle top with parsley and serve immediately. Enjoy!
michael minikel says
Cannot wait to try this, sounds incredible.