Butternut Squash and Goat’s Cheese Pasta

The prospect of university exams makes me wish I were back sitting A levels , when knowledge of the best highlighter brand was far more vital than knowledge of the subject itself.  Such happy regression is unfortunately out of the question. Nevertheless, performing activities reminiscient of childhood is a useful coping mechanism in these times of woe.  Like lectures which comprise of  a tutor yelling “The exam is three hours. There are three questions. Spend one hour on each question!”, a bit of puerile fun leads to a suspended disbelief  that you don’t need to be as clever as first thought.  This mentality is, of course, dangerous, if carried all the way into the exam room, but momentarily helpful if you feel stressed enough to do something like jumping off a crane in the middle of Palace Green. So to help you on your way, here is a recipe that oozes all of the glamour of a tuscan summer lunch yet maintains the comforting texture of  what can only be described as baby food.

You will need:

1 butternut squash (washed),
1 pack crumbly goats cheese (must be crumbly),
A few handfuls of pasta e.g. farfalle or penne,
Sage (preferably fresh),
Olive oil,
Toasted pine nuts (optional).

Salt and pepper to season.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

2. Chop up about a quarter of the butternut squash into thumb-sized cubes (remove seeds but don’t bother peeling if you don’t want to).

3. Put cubes in an ovenproof dish. Drizzle with oil and season well. Put a few sage leaves/whatever herb you fancy on the top.

4. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes until the squash becomes soft.

5. After the squash has been cooking for about 25 minutes, cook some pasta and, when al dente, drain and put to one side.

6. Crumble as much goat’s cheese as you feel necessary over the butternut squash and pop it back into the oven for a minute or so.
7. When the cheese has melted slightly, take butternut squash out of the oven.

8. Combine the butternut squash/goat’s cheese combination with the pasta in a frying pan over a low heat. There should be enough oil left over from baking the butternut squash, but if the pan looks too dry, add a nob of butter. If adding pine nuts, add these to warm through.

9. Remove after a few minutes and serve with a drizzle of olive oil.