Winter squash becomes the sauce in this pasta recipe

Winter squash always joins the seasonal cooking lineup in October, as summer vegetables fade out. I've roasted it for side dishes, stirred it into risotto, and pureed it for soup. But I'd never thought of using it as base for pasta sauce until my new Bon Appetit magazine arrived in the mail. (Yes, I still subscribe to a few print magazines.)

Although the cover touts "Our Best Thanksgiving Yet," the editors slipped some October-appropriate recipes into the front. That's where I found the pasta recipe, and decided I had to test it.

Although a butternut squash was listed in the ingredients, a Honey Nut squash was sitting on my counter, just waiting to be used. It was the perfect size. Pasta, fresh garlic and Italian sausage are pantry staples, so all I had to purchase were the dates -- dates? -- that the recipe also called for. But sticker shock at the price of a package of unpitted Medjool dates, which the recipe specified, led me to grab a house-brand bag of pitted dates instead.

As it happens, I could have skipped the dates entirely and still had a delicious entree. So that's what I'm advising here: Include the dates only if a) you like them; b) you're using sweet Italian sausage; or c) you like sweet and savory battling it out on your palette.

For my taste, the little pops of sweet interfered with the spices of the hot sausage and the specified 6 cloves of garlic. Next time, red pepper flakes will go into the sauce rather than dates. But that's also optional. Plenty of black pepper and the vinegar at the end are not optional.

For those not familiar with it, I should explain about Honey Nut squash.  A relatively new member of the squash family, it was developed by a Cornell University Institute plant breeder, Michael Mazourek. In 2009, he was challenged by a New York chef to create a squash that was smaller, sweeter and less stringy than the ubiquitous butternut. It also has a thin skin that can be eaten, but for this recipe, the squash needs to break down considerably, so I peeled it anyway.

Winter squash rigatoni with sausage

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

One butternut or Honey Nut squash, 1-1/2 to 2 pounds, peeled, trimmed, seeds removed

Kosher salt

3 to 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 pound hot or sweet Italian sausage, casings removed

6 to 8 large dates, pitted if they are purchased unpitted, then quartered or chopped, optional

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, optional

6 garlic cloves, smashed and minced

Freshly ground black pepper

12 ounces rigatoni or other tube pasta

1 tablespoon or more sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar

Instructions:

Cut the peeled and seeded squash into 1-inch cubes. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, then add the chunks of squash. Cook for 12-14 minutes, until tender, then transfer the squash to a bowl using a slotted spoon. Do NOT dump the cooking water -- you'll be using it again soon. Turn the heat under the pot to low and cover it for now.

Over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a medium Dutch oven or high-sided skillet. Add the sausage, breaking it up into small pieces with a wooden spoon or spatula. Cook without stirring for about 3 minutes to get the undersides of the sausage a nice brown, then stir it and continue cooking until the pieces are brown all over and just cooked through. Move the cooked sausage to a plate with that slotted spoon.

If using the dates, reduce heat under the Dutch oven or skillet to medium low, add the date pieces and cook for about 3 minutes. Remove the dates to the plate with the sausage, and sprinkle on some salt.

If there is very little fat left in the Dutch oven or skillet, add 1 to 2 tablespoons more olive oil. Now add the red pepper flakes (if using), the garlic, about 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the cooked squash cubes.

Stir the ingredients in the pot, breaking up the squash and scraping browned bits from the bottom of the pot. Use the wooden spoon or spatula to smash the squash into a thick paste that still has a few smaller chunks.

Meanwhile, turn the heat under the squash cooking water back up to high -- you may have to add some water, which is OK.  Pour in the pasta once the water starts boiling. Cook the pasta to very al dente, about 3 minutes less than the package recommends. (Example: Rigatoni recommended 13 to 14 minutes, so I cooked it 10 minutes.)

Once again, do NOT drain the cooking water. Remove the pasta to a bowl with that invaluable slotted spoon.  Now add 1 cup of the pasta water to the pot/skillet with the squash mixture. Blend the water in until the sauce has a consistent thickness; use a whisk if needed.

Now stir in the sausage, the dates (if using) and the cooked pasta. Turn the heat back up to medium-high. Add more cooking water as needed, 1/2 cup at a time, until the pasta is perfectly al dente and coated in sauce. (You may have to cover the pan temporarily to get the heat up quickly.)

Remove the pot from the heat and stir in 1 tablespoon of sherry vinegar or balsamic vinegar. Taste and add black pepper, salt and/or more vinegar as needed.

Serve immediately. Steamed broccoli makes a nice accompaniment. 

Leftover pasta can be refrigerated, then reheated on the stove or in the microwave.