Caramelised Onion & Butternut Squash Linguine

Caramelised onion & butternut squash are a combination I revert to often. Usually they lend themselves to being the sweet component to balance the salt in any other dish, but in this one they come together to create harmony.

With very few additional ingredients, the onions and squash are really the stars of the show as their flavours are intensified by cooking them down slowly. The butternut squash cooks in such a way that it breaks down, and releases its natural sugars and, with the addition of the pasta water, becomes the sauce. The hot paprika adds depth too, and embraces the savoury quality you associate with onions and squash pre-caramelisation as well as lending them the spicy kick that’s most certainly needed.

The sauce is definitely a celebration of the two, giving them the opportunity to change any prior opinion you may have had about what either of them can do.

Serves 3-4/ Time-40 mins

Ingredients

• 5 Tbsp Olive oil 

• 3 Medium Onions (sliced)

• 5 Cloves Garlic (roughly chopped

• 1tsp honey

• 500g Butternut squash chopped into 1cm cubes/ 1/2 a medium squash

• Salt & Pepper

• 1/2 tsp Hot Paprika (or sub with 1tsp chilli flakes + 1tsp sweet paprika)

• Small Handful Fresh Basil

• 300g Linguine 

• 1 Cup Pasta Water (reserved after cooking)

• Halloumi

Method

1. Sauté the onions & garlic, honey & sprinkle of salt in the olive oil for 10 mins

2. Add the Butternut squash and cover without stirring, this way the squash will start to steam and the onion mixture will continue to caramelise

3. Add the hot paprika, about 1.5tsp salt and stir

4. Cover and let cook down on a medium-low heat for around 20 mins, or until the mixture is caramelised (some of the butternut squash will break down, we want that to happen)

5. Stir every 5 mins to ensure that it doesn’t burn

6. Once the butternut squash begins to break down slightly, boil the pasta in salted water until just before it’s al dente (it should take 10 mins & will be a little undercooked)

7. Loosen sauce mixture with 3/4 cup cooked pasta water, this will allow for the sauce to thicken eventually

8. Add the drained pasta & basil to the sauce and bring the mixture together to let the pasta finish cooking in the sauce

9. Allow it to simmer for about 5 minutes until the pasta is well coated & cooked to your liking

10. Serve and top with grated Halloumi, as much as your heart desires (the more the better ;) )