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This kale pesto is made with basil, almonds and plenty of parmesan to give an amazing flavour! Serve mixed with bowtie pasta and topped with roasted butternut squash for a little creamy sweetness.
Pasta is such a wonderful thing, isn’t it? My favourite thing to do is curl up on the sofa with a big bowl of pasta. It’s such a good vehicle for all kinds of flavour and always makes me excited to eat dinner. Whether it’s a classic beef lasagne or a base for a creamy skillet chicken dish, it’s going to put a smile on mine and Will’s faces which is all I really want from cooking, you know?
Will and I have been carb loading. At least that’s what we’ve been calling it since we’ve been training for a half marathon.
I’ve been told by several people that you actually only need to carb load the day before you’re doing a long run but better safe than sorry right? These kale pesto bowties were one of our carb filled dinners which also happened to be filled with loads of vegetables and protein and all that good stuff.
Anyway, we did our half marathon on Sunday and it went pretty well. I found it tougher than I thought I would but luckily I was running with my dad who really helped me to keep going and was so super encouraging.
It was really special to get to do something like this with my dad. He’s recently started running (he did his first marathon on his 70th birthday!!) and I’m so proud of him so it meant a lot to both of us to run the half marathon together even though I found it really hard!
Anyway, whether you’re carb loading or not this recipe is the perfect simple dinner. I’m having a bit of kale obsession at the moment (I recently made this baked gnocchi with kale and it’s SO GOOD!) so it was only a matter of time before I threw it in a pesto.
This version uses blanched almonds instead of pine nuts but otherwise keeps pretty classic with parmesan, garlic, basil and lemon.
Probably my favourite part of this dish though is that roasted butternut squash on top. It’s such a perfect sweet compliment to the earthy freshness of the kale pesto bowties. I love it!
How to make kale pesto with roasted butternut squash:
- Start off by chopping your butternut squash and getting your oven preheated. Your squash will cook while you make everything else.
- Once that’s in the oven get a pot of water on the heat for the pasta then you can concentrate on your pesto which simply involves blending all of your pesto ingredients together.
- Once those tasks are done you simply cook you pasta and put everything together, easy peasy!
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Keep scrolling to get the recipe…
WONDERING WHAT TO DO WITH THE LEFTOVER INGREDIENTS YOU’VE GOT ONCE YOU’VE MADE THESE KALE PESTO BOWTIES WITH ROASTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH?
If you’re anything like me then you’re always looking for ways to save money and avoid food waste so I want to make sure you’ve get plenty of ideas on how to use up any ingredients that are leftover from my recipes!
Four Cheese Butternut Squash Lasagne with Spinach
Roasted Butternut Squash & Pancetta Pizza with Rocket
Kale Pesto Bowties with Roasted Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1/2 large Butternut Squash peeled and chopped into small cubes
- 500 g Bowtie Pasta
- Salt and Pepper
For the Kale Pesto
- 100 g Blanched Almonds
- 70 g Kale roughly chopped
- 40 g Basil Leaves
- 1 clove Garlic
- 50 g Parmesan grated plus extra for serving
- 1 Lemon juiced
- 60 ml Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/390°F. Place the butternut squash on a large baking tray with the olive oil and a good sprinkling of salt and pepper. Place in the oven for 20-30 minutes.
- Bring a pan of salted water to the boil for the pasta. Put all the pesto ingredients in a blender and pulse until mostly smooth or you've reached your desired texture. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- When the squash is nearly ready cook the pasta. Drain and return to the pan with the pesto. Mix thoroughly then add the roasted squash, reserving a little for topping. Serve in bowls topped with a final few cubes of squash and plenty of grated parmesan.
Notes
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14 Comments
Kristy
07/03/2018 at 1:15 AMSquash AND pesto??? Yes please!!
Amy
07/03/2018 at 9:28 PMHaha thanks Kristy 🙂
Shadi
07/03/2018 at 1:59 PMWhat a delicious and easy meal to have on a weeknight! Homemade pesto sounds great!
Amy
07/03/2018 at 9:27 PMThanks Shadi!
rebecca
07/03/2018 at 2:16 PMohhhh I’ve got leftover butternut squash in my fridge, totally have to make this with it!
Amy
07/03/2018 at 9:27 PMThank you Rebecca 🙂
Lisa | Garlic & Zest
07/03/2018 at 2:36 PMI’ve only run a 10K — a half marathon seems like a real leap for me, but I give you a ton of credit! Carbo-loading, though — I’m all over that. In fact, I could be a champion. This looks like a good start to me.
Amy
07/03/2018 at 9:27 PMHaha thanks Lisa!
Claire | Sprinkles and Sprouts
07/03/2018 at 2:38 PMThere are soooo many things in this post that I need to comment on!!
But my first one….Go your Dad! first marathon at 70, man that is super impressive!
And carb loading, I like your thinking, best to get your carb loading in!!!!….can I be carb loading for a year??? LOL.
Lastly. Man this is delicious. Pasta (best food ever!) rich pesto and then sweet butternut. AMAZING!
Amy
07/03/2018 at 9:27 PMHaha, definitely! Thanks Claire 🙂
Danielle
07/03/2018 at 2:53 PMI love that you’re carb loading way before the half marathon! I ran a 5K once, and hated it. Vowed to never do such a thing again. Guess I was just not made to run competitively. Weird because my sister is a marathon runner. Anyways, I love this. I’ve never made kale pesto, but I love homemade pesto, and of course butternut squash. YUM!
Amy
07/03/2018 at 9:26 PMHaha yes being able to eat loads of carbs is probably the only thing I like about running!
Albert
09/03/2018 at 11:16 AMOh my goodness! this just sounds so incredible! love that you used kale in the pesto and added almonds to it, this is a MUST try!!!
Amy
09/03/2018 at 11:22 PMThanks Albert!