Creamy Butternut Squash & Cauliflower Gnocchi
I love everything Trader Joes! I bought most of my ingredients there. Their cauliflower gnocchi is so good, this recipe uses 2 packages. You can find it in their frozen section. If you didn’t want to deal with cutting the butternut squash (see video tutorial below to learn to cut a butternut squash), you could also buy the pre-cut squash at Trader Joes as well. I would recommend at least 2 bags of their pre-cut for this recipe. This recipe uses cashews to create a “cream” sauce. About 1 hour before you start- make sure to soak your cashews in hot water. They get so creamy you won’t even know you are missing the dairy, it seriously blows my mind at how well it comes out! I also love the addition of the nutritional yeast to give this dish a slightly “cheesy” flavor. The fresh sage and thyme really bring this dish to life. You can add additional vegetables and/or chicken to your liking. I really like this dish as a side but it could easily be made an entree too! I think this might be my new favorite recipe! I hope you enjoy!
Ingredients (Makes ~6 servings):
1 small/medium butternut squash, peeled and cubed
2 shallots, peeled and chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1 cup raw cashews (unroasted, unsalted)- soaked in 1 cup hot water ~60 mins before using
2 Tbs nutritional yeast
2 Tbs balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs olive oil + more for roasting
15 fresh sage leaves
2 Tbs fresh thyme leaves
2 packages cauliflower gnocchi (24 oz total) or other gnocchi/pasta you prefer
1 tsp sea salt + more for roasting
Pinch of black pepper for roasting
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Place butternut squash on a parchment paper covered sheet pan.
Place shallots and garlic on a separate parchment paper covered sheet pan.
Drizzle both with a small amount of olive oil and a healthy pinch of salt and pepper.
Place in the oven. Keep an eye on the shallots and garlic so they do not burn. I took the shallots and garlic out at 20 minutes. They were toasted brown.
Remove butternut squash once soft, about 30-35 minutes.
Add 1/2 of the roasted butternut squash (~1 cup) to a blender along with the shallots, garlic, cashews in their water, nutritional yeast, balsamic vinegar, 2 Tbs olive oil, sage leaves, thyme leaves and 1 tsp salt. Blend until smooth. You may need a little more water to thin out the sauce to your liking. I added about 1/2 cup more water.
Cook the cauliflower gnocchi (or other gnocchi/pasta you choose) according to package instructions. I steamed the cauliflower gnocchi in a pan with 1/4 cup water with the lid on for about 10 minutes. Then I added 3 Tbs butter to the pan and cooked until the gnocchi was crispy golden brown, it took about 15-20 minutes to brown.
Add sauce to the pan with the crispy gnocchi. Then fold in the other half of the butternut squash.
Add additional salt and pepper to your liking.
Optional - you can add a green vegetable such as steamed broccoli or add some rotisserie chicken for a full meal.
Tools I love and recommend for this recipe (Affiliate links):
I am so excited for you to try this recipe! If you post a picture, please tag me @RachelMasterKitchen and Hashtag #Rachel.Master.Kitchen on instagram!
