PASTA WITH WINTER SQUASH, PINE NUTS, & CHEESE SAUCE

~ While the Pasta Cooks: 100 Sauces So Easy You Can Prepare the Sauce in the Time It Takes to Cook the Pasta, written by Andrew Schloss with Ken Bookman

1 lb. tube-shaped pasta, such as ziti or penne
1 lb. acorn or butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and shredded
1/2 c. pine nuts
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 c. freshly grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the past and stir a few times to ensure that the pasta does not stick to itself. Boil vigorously for the time recommended on the past package or until the pasta is tender. Five minutes before the past will finish cooking, add the squash and stir briefly. 

While the pasta cooks, toast the pine nuts in a hot dry skillet. Drain the pasta and squash and toss them with the olive oil, garlic, cheese, salt pepper, and pine nuts in a serving bowl.

Notes: We double the squash, but it still tastes way more like parmesan than squash. Squash-haters can easily eat it because the squash is grated. 

** This post contains affiliate links and I'm grateful when people use them. **