Whole Grain Penne with Creamy Squash and Sesame
Cooking in Tuscany at the Culinary Academy at Monteverdi as part of Sempre Sano is always a highlight of my fall. Not only do I get to forage in the gardens for inspiration for my cooking classes, I get to collaborate with Chef Giancarla Bodoni, their vegetable-loving executive chef. Giancarla owned and headed up the kitchen at one of the first certified organic restaurants in the US for 20 years. Now she does magical things to vegetables in Tuscany, at a hilltop cooking school overlooking the stunning Val d’Orcia. She particularly loves pumpkins and her garden was overflowing with all shapes and sizes of winter squash when I was there.
On the day of our cooking class collaboration, we spotted an especially beautiful dark green pumpkin tangled up in its own vine in the garden. We were immediately inspired to turn it into a hearty pasta dish. I have adapted this recipe for Whole Grain Penne with Creamy Squash and Sesame using butternut squash so I can make it year-round, not just when pumpkins are in season.
The sesamol in sesame seeds protects neurons
For a hit of color, flavor, and texture, we added sesame seeds to the dish. It just so happens that they’re packed with zinc, magnesium, and vitamin B6, all important nutrients for memory function. They also provide sesamol, a type of plant lignan shown to have neuroprotective properties in animal studies. Sesamol has been studied as a possible therapeutic agent for those recovering from brain injury. It’s no wonder that sesame seeds have been called brain food as far back as the 8th century!
A creamy squash sauce that is dairy-free
This dish employs a few key brain healthy cooking techniques. First, you’ll sprinkle cubes of squash with sesame seeds and olive oil. You’ll actually double down on butternut in this recipe by simmering more squash with shallots and cashews and blending it all into a smooth sauce. The cashews provide healthy fats and a silky texture despite being dairy-free. Rather than throw out the cooking water, which retains nutrients such as water-soluble carotenoids that may have seeped out while simmering, you’ll use it to thin the sauce to your liking.
Finish like an Italian with a glug of olive oil
You’ll finish the dish with a boost of flavor with a glug of extra-virgin olive oil. Italians, I have learned, often add olive oil at the end of cooking. This infuses the pasta with the high-quality oil’s peppery flavor, and is a surer method of retaining its delicate polyphenols. Tossed with whole-grain pasta—a brain-friendlier choice than white pasta—the cubes of sesame-crusted squash are a nice contrast to the creamy sauce.
Portion your pasta like an Italian, too
The portion size for the pasta here is typical of the way Italians eat. In general, a single portion of pasta in Italy is around 1 cup (2 ounces dried pasta, or 3½ ounces cooked), about one-third of what we see at restaurants in the U.S. That’s because Italians enjoy their pasta as part of a larger meal that may include many small courses. Smaller portions also reflect the Italian attitude towards pasta, where it is not easily or cheaply made. Because whole grain pasta provides a good boost of fiber, along with the squash, I think you will find that a small dish of this pasta will really satisfy.
Servings |
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- 6 cups cubed butternut squash or pumpkin (from 1 large or 2 small squash, about 3 lbs. total), peeled and divided
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ cup sesame seeds I like to use equal parts white and black.
- 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
- 2 large shallots sliced
- ¼ cup extra dry vermouth
- 1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt plus more for the pasta water
- ½ cup raw cashews
- freshly ground black pepper
- 8 ounces whole grain penne or other sturdy shape of pasta
Ingredients
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- Preheat your oven to 400ºF. Lined a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place half of the squash pieces on the baking sheet and toss with 1 tablespoon oil and ½ teaspoon of salt. Roast until the squash is soft and starting to brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with black and white sesame seeds. Put back in the oven for another 15 minutes, then set aside and keep warm.
- Meanwhile, heat one tablespoon of the oil in a large pot over low heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring often, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the vermouth and bring to a boil, scraping any bits of browned shallots from the bottom of the pot, and cook for another 3 minutes. Transfer the shallots and vermouth to a blender; set aside.
- Get a pot of salted water boiling for the pasta.
- Add the remaining raw squash, water, cashews, and remaining teaspoon salt to the pot you cooked the shallots in. The squash should be submerged, so add more water if needed. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer gently until you can easily pierce a piece of squash with a fork, about 20 minutes. Let cool slightly, then ladle the vegetables and half the cooking water into the blender with the shallots. Blend on high (being careful to make sure the lid is on tight with a dish towel to cover allowing the steam to escape) until very creamy and smooth, about 2 minutes, using additional water if needed to give it the consistency of a heavy cream. Pour the sauce back into the same saucepan and keep warm over low heat.
- Add your pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente (about 1 minute before the specified cooking time on the package). Drain, reserving one cup of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the pot with the sauce and gently stir until the pasta is evenly coated. Add the pasta cooking water by the tablespoonful, if needed, to loosen the sauce.
- Just before serving, toss the roasted squash and sesame seeds with the pasta. Divide pasta evenly between bowls, drizzle with the rest of the olive oil, and sprinkle with chives. Serve hot.
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