Although we think of pesto as being basically basil, Parmesan and olive oil, it can contain other delicious ingredients. This simple spaghetti with butternut squash and aubergine pesto dish combines the vegetables with Parmesan to make a gorgeous Italian-style dish.
Ingredients
- 400g dried spaghetti
- Handful chopped fresh parsley
- For the pesto
- 1 small butternut squash, deseeded and cubed
- 150ml extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
- 1 small aubergine
- 115g vegetarian Parmesan, grated, plus extra shavings to garnish
- 1 fat garlic clove, roughly chopped
- 75g pine nuts
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Method
- 1. Preheat the oven to 200C/ fan180C/gas 6. Put the squash in a large roasting tin, drizzle with a little oil, season and toss together. Roast for 10 minutes.
- 2. Prick the aubergine a few times with a fork, then rub all over with a little more oil. Add to the roasting tin – push the squash to one side – and roast for a further 25 minutes, until the vegetables are nice and soft.
- 3. Meanwhile, bring a large pan of salted water to the boil. Add the pasta and cook according to packet instructions, until al dente. Drain well and return to the pan.
- 4. Meanwhile, chop the aubergine – you can strip off the skin if you like, but I prefer to leave it on. Put into a food processor or blender with the squash, Parmesan, garlic and pine nuts. Blend until smooth, then, with the motor running, slowly add the oil until you have a thick sauce-like pesto – you might not need to add all the oil. Season with black pepper.
- 5. Toss the pesto through the pasta, then divide between serving bowls. Scatter with extra Parmesan shavings and the chopped parsley to serve.
Nutritional info
Per serving 949kcals, 54.9g fat (11.7g saturated), 28.9g protein, 90.8g carbs, 12.4g sugar, 0.6g salt
Wine Recommendation
Wine note: Try a light, tangy Italian red with this. The juicy, red-berry flavours of a Valpolicella are spot on and won’t overwhelm the pasta.