I have long been obsessed with the flavor of squash with pasta. I’ve been wanting to incorporate squash into a pasta dish because I love the squash filled raviolis I’ve enjoyed ordering at restaurants. My goal was to create a sauce that incorporated squash into it. I wanted something easier than filling raviolis, so I came up with this Homemade Tomato Squash Pasta Sauce. It’s super delicious! It’s quick to make and super tasty.
Fall is a great time for enjoying squash. I love the color of squash, the taste of squash, and the health benefits of eating squash. I also love how a squash will last for a long time before it goes bad so you can store it for a long time before cooking it if need be.
My family lives right near two small local farmers who sell squash (among other veggies) and I love buying from them. One farm is even an organic vegetable producing farm with free range eggs. I have a thing about wanting to use eggs from free-range chickens, as a vegetarian this is of mega importance to me. I feel super lucky living next to these wonderful farms.
Ingredients For Homemade Squash Pasta Sauce
This sauce is made with common ingredients that are easy to find. This easy homemade pasta sauce is made using the following ingredients:
- acorn squash
- can of plain tomato sauce
- grated Parmesan cheese
- skim milk
- dried basil leaves
- black pepper
- melted butter
- onion powder
- garlic salt with parsely
- optional: finely grated Asiago cheese
Use any type of pasta with this sauce, in my photos I used large pasta shells. My next plan is to make this sauce and use it in a lasagna. That sounds so amazing!
This sauce is very easy and quick to make. I’ve made it several times in 25 minutes including cooking time so this recipe is perfect for a delicious dish for busy families. It is important to heat the sauce to help incorporate the grated Parmesan cheese into the sauce, otherwise it will be gritty. The recipe makes just under 3 cups of sauce.
The beautiful aspects of this sauce include how quick it is to make, how yummy it is, and how cheap it is to make–cheap is always a bonus in my book! 🙂 It tastes just as awesome as fresh when eaten leftover too.
Make This Dish into a Hybrid Meal
This recipe is vegetarian but it could easily be made into a hybrid dish by topping the pasta with cooked meat. I always save leftover meat when my husband grills for purposes such as adding meat to this pasta dish. My way of hybrid cooking (for families composed of vegetarians and meat-eaters) is easy to accomplish with this type of meal when leftover meat is saved in the freezer. I simply thaw it in the microwave or in the fridge (if I have the time).
Hidden Vegetable
This is a healthy, kid-friendly recipe because kids love pasta and sauce. Mine didn’t even notice the squash in the sauce, but he said he loved this recipe. I love it when I can hide veggies in a dish;) This sauce is great for both kids and adults! A recipe the whole family will love:)
I hope you try out this recipe for your own family, and let me know how it went. I’d love to hear!
This is an original recipe by Julie Hoag juliehoagwriter @ 10/25/2017.
Try out my other squash containing recipes: Rich Decadent Butternut Squash Apple Bars or Pecan Squash Rolls Appetizer
Fall bread: Maple Cinnamon Pumpkin Bread
Try out this easy recipe: Easy Sweet Bean Crockpot Vegetarian Chili
To sign up for information about my Vegetarian and Hybrid Vegetarian/Meat Recipe cookbook coming out soon, sign up here: Hybrid Recipes for Vegetarians and Meat-Eaters in the same recipe + vegetarian recipes you’ll love!
Homemade Tomato Squash Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup acorn squash cooked and scooped from rind
- 1 can tomato sauce plain, 15 oz. can
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese grated
- 3/4 cup milk I use skim
- 1 teaspoon basil leaves dried
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 3 Tablespoons butter melted
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic salt I use garlic salt with parsely
- 1/2 cup Asiago cheese grated, optional ingredient
Instructions
- Combine 3/4 c. cooked acorn squash, 1 (15 oz.) can plain tomato sauce, 1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese, 3/4 c. skim milk, 1 tsp. dried basil leaves, 1/4 tsp. black pepper, 3 Tbsp. melted butter, and 1 tsp. garlic salt with parsely. Blend all together with a hand blender for 1-2 minutes until smooth.
- Heat sauce in a covered saucepan on the stovetop for 25 minutes, simmer. Stir occasionally. Keep cover on to prevent splattering of sauce. Let it bubble.
- After 25 mintues, stir sauce and pour over pasta. Top with finely shredded Asiago cheese or meat as desired. Makes just under 3 cups sauce.
Omg yes! this sauce looks incredible comforting for this cold weather we’re getting right now. I need to make this tonight!
Thanks! Yes, perfect for fall and colder weather! I hope you enjoy it!
This looks so good. I love incorporating veggies into pasta sauce for my kids too. Will definitely try!
It’s super yum! Hope you all like it! Thank you:)
That looks absolutely delicious! I don’t eat much squash but I really need to try to incorporate more into my diet!
Yes, it’s a great dish for it! It changes the taste of the sauce but it doesn’t taste like squash, it makes a great flavor for sauce mixed with the tomato.
Thanks!