Serves 4
Squash Pappardelle with Pesto, Almond Ricotta and Coconut Bacon
Ingredients
Pesto
2 cups packed fresh basil (large stems removed)
1/3 cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts
3 large cloves garlic (peeled)
2 tbsp lemon juice
Pinch of salt (plus more to taste)
3-4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (or you can sub water- but it will not have as creamy of a texture)
Ricotta
1 cup blanched almonds (commonly slivered. Soaked for at least 2 hours)
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/3-1/2 cup water
1 clove garlic (optional)
¼ teaspoon salt (more to taste)
Butternut Squash Noodles
1 medium butternut squash
Toppings
-1/3 cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts
-micro greens or chopped basil
- 1 three ounce bag of Madly Hadley® Original Coconut Bacon
Directions
Pesto: Add all the ingredients (starting with just a little water) to the food processor and blend. Don’t over blend. You want a little texture. Add a little more olive oil or water to get the desired texture you want and salt to taste.
Ricotta: Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth and ricotta like texture is achieved (this may take several minutes- I usually let mine run for 5 mins). Add more lemon, salt or water to adjust the texture and flavor to your preference.
Butternut squash pappardelle: Peel butternut squash with a vegetable peeler. I recommend getting a heavy duty stainless peeler with the blade horizontal to the handle- it makes dealing with hard vegetables a lot easier when you have a sturdy peeler! Peel long ribbons with the vegetable peeler, these will be your noodles. Fill a large pot with water. Add a large pinch of salt and bring the water to a boil. Drop all the “noodles” in and cook for about 1-2 mins, the time will depend on your vegetable peeler on how thin the noodles are. Be CAREFUL not to overcook the noodles or they will fall apart. Take them out when they are al dente.
Toss the hot noodles with the pesto and serve with the ricotta on the plate. Top with nuts, micro greens or herbs and Madly Hadley coconut bacon :)