Roasted Butternut Baked Penne

This. Was. Sooooo Yummy!

In my family, we have 2 toddlers who are still trying to discover what they like and don't like, a teenage boy who eats everything in sight, a vegetarian tween daughter who ironically doesn't like many vegetables and a husband who tries to eat healthy during the week so he can splurge more on the weekends. Then there's me who is a combination of all of that. This dish pleased everyone!! Don't be afraid of that little bit of cream and the cheese if you're like my husband, it's really pretty healthy since it makes such a big pan.

The star of this dish was my awesome brown sugar bacon! Yes, I'm going to brag. I love brown sugar bacon! It's like magic! It combines those mouthwatering flavors of smokey and sweet, Oh my sweet fancy Moses, there are just no words! You just sprinkle a little bit of the bacon over each serving and it's just...well, it's just darn good! I like to pair this meal with a green garden salad for even more servings of vegetables.

Note: If you don't have mascarpone cheese, you can substitute with 1-2 oz. softened cream cheese, 2 t. heavy cream & 1 T. sour cream mixed together.

Additional Note: When reheating this, add a little splash of milk to help it come together better.

Serves 4-6

2 lbs. butternut squash

olive oil

salt & pepper

3 T. butter

1 shallot, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/4 c. mascarpone cheese

2/3 c. milk

1/4. cream

1 lb. penne pasta

1/2 c. grated mozzarella

1-2 oz. mozzarella, cubed

1/4 c. parmesan, grated

1/2 t. dried sage

1 t. italian seasoning

Brown Sugar Bacon

5-6 slices bacon

brown sugar

pepper

Roasting Squash:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Half the butternut squash width wise and then half again length wise so you have 4 pieces of squash. Scoop out the seeds and membranes and place on a baking sheet. Season with a little olive oil, salt & pepper. Roast in oven for about 35-40 min. Set aside and let cool til you can handle comfortably. Once cooled a bit, scoop the squash out of the shell and put into a medium bowl. Mash with a potato masher or a fork, adding some of the milk to the squash to make it a little easier to work with.

Brown Sugar Bacon:

Lay bacon on a foil lined baking sheet or one of those roasting pans with the rack thingy. Sprinkle about a teaspoon of brown sugar over each slice of bacon and sprinkle some pepper. Bake at 400 degrees for about 12-14 minutes. You will be able to smell the sweet caramelized scent of baked brown sugar.

Prepare water for pasta and cook about 2 min. less than what the directions state.

While pasta is cooking, heat a medium saucepan over medium heat and add butter. Once butter is melted add shallots. Cook butter/shallot mixture til butter just begins to brown and add garlic. Cook for about 30 seconds more. Add any milk left over from mashing squash, then cream, mascarpone cheese, nutmeg, dried sage, Italian seasoning and additional salt & pepper to taste.

Drain pasta and pour back into pot you cooked it in. Add about 2/3 of the sauce to start and mix together. Add more sauce if you think it looks too dry. Stir in the cubed mozzarella. Pour into a greased 13X9 baking pan and sprinkle grated mozzarella & parmesan. Sprinkle some Italian seasoning over the top and place in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or......until hot & bubbly.