Creamy Pasta "risottata" with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino

Creamy Pasta risottata with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino, a dish that says Fall in a most delicious way, adding in some beautiful color and comfort. Amazing al dente Gragnano Mezzi Ziti Pasta bathed in a sweet meets pungent dreamy cream sauce. Pure lusciousness, a must try!

Song of the day: "The Sweetest Taboo" by Sade

Creamy Pasta "risottata" with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino. Fall in a plate

Fall is that season that gives us a heads up that the temperatures are changing, and also that nature is going into hibernation. Colors of red, oranges, brown, and yellow are prominent. The sound of dry crisp leaves rustling in the wind, and that brush of cool air upon our cheeks. For me, I really start to crave soulful comfort foods. Something that warms my insides and tells me I love you.

Today we are sharing a pasta dish that uses a seasonal ingredient, the wonderful buttercup squash, or as we call it in Italian zucca gialla. Come let's get into the kitchen and cook together. Today's recipe Creamy Pasta "risottata" with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino!

Ingredients for this pasta dish

Actually not very complicated, let's have a look:

• Butter cup squash
• Mezzi ziti Gragnano pasta
• Scamorza cheese (in alternative: Asiago, Fontina, Provola, Taleggio)
• Pecorino cheese
• Carrots, onions, and celery
• Fresh basil
• Evo oil
• Vegetable broth
• Salt and pepper

For Equipment:

• Pot for cooking pasta
• Soup pot for broth
• Wooden spoon
• Slotted spoon
• Sauté pan
• Some bowls for ingredients

Pasta of choice for Creamy Pasta "risottata" with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino

We decided to use Mezzi Ziti, a gift from a friend. We were delighted to see it was a Gragnano pasta. To explain, for those of you who don't know what that is, I am going to share some facts with you.

Gragnano is located in the Region of Campania, on a hilltop between Monti Lattari and the Amalfi coast. It is celebrated for the air-dried bronze-extruded pasta, recognized as "The best in the world". It is rated PGI "Protected Geographical Indication" meaning it meets rigorous standards to earn that right. The Gragnanesi call it "Oro di Gragnano", Gragnano's gold.

That's our history lesson for today, time to get into the kitchen and start cooking. Andiamo!

Could you use a different pasta shape?

Indeed, here is what we recommend: Paccheri, Penne, Rigatoni, a short pasta, that is. Make sure it is of good quality and you recognize that by looking at the surface: too polished and smooth, not a good sign. Rough, and textured, that's the one!

Prepping the veggies

As a matter of fact, I am a firm believer in organizing your tasks for cooking. Having said that, here is what we need to do first before firing up the burners:

• Firstly, we want to fill a pot with water and salt it "like the sea".
• Secondly, time to mince up the onion, celery, and carrot.
• Thirdly, cut the buttercup squash in half, then scoop out the pulp and seeds on one half. Cover the other in plastic wrap and place into the fridge for another recipe.
• Cut the half squash into ¼ inch slices then peel and dice. The pieces should be small, no more that a ¼ inch by ¼ inch. Place them in a bowl.
• After, turn the pot of water on, then grate some Pecorino, and dice up the scamorza, again making small diced pieces ¼ inch by ¼ inch, roughly a little over ½ a centimeter.
• Pour your vegetable broth into a medium soup pot and turn heat to a low setting. We just want to keep the broth warm.

Our prep is done, time to get cooking!

Sautéing brings out the flavor

By all means, to maximize the flavor, it is always a good idea to sauté your base first. This starts that caramelization process and also creates those bits of flavor in the pan that will take the flavor profile to the next level.

Here, let me show you how we do it:

• Drizzle olive oil into your sauté pan. Toss in the minced onions, carrots, and celery (also known as "mirepoix"). Turn heat to a medium setting and cook that mirepoix for a few minutes until veggies soften and you start to see the natural sugars on the bottom of the pan.
• Toss in the diced squash and stir with a spoon to makes sure all the flavors are mingling well. Season with salt and pepper.

In comes the broth for this Creamy Pasta risottata with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino

The reason we have that broth warm is that we do not want to disturb the cooking process (pouring cold broth stops the cooking time, bringing down the temperature). Pour a few ladles of warm broth into the pan and stir. Keep an eye on it and stir frequently, we don't want that squash sticking to the pan. Here are the next steps:

• Our squash is cooking nicely with that base of mirepoix and broth. We toss our pasta into the pot of salted water we have boiling already.
• Cook the pasta for less than half the time. We are going to finish it in the pan with the squash.
• Before we toss the pasta in, I am going to puree some of the squash with a bit of broth with a hand blender. I want to keep some morsels of squash for texture.
• Now, we can throw in our pasta and add more broth. As the broth dissipates add more, until you have that pasta in its beautiful al dente texture. Important to keep stirring the pasta. This process is just like making risotto. That is why it is called "risottata", cooked like a risotto.

Here comes the cheese for this Creamy Pasta "risottata" with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino

Our pasta is al dente, turn off the heat, toss in the diced Scamorza and grated Pecorino. Reserve some Pecorino when plating. Stir it until all the cheese melts, forming a wonderful deep velvety creaminess. A nice sprinkling of fresh chopped basil and we are ready to plate.

Plating

I love this part because I know we are going to be eating very quickly. Most pastas need to be plated and served. There is nothing worse than a cold plate of pasta. Scoop the pasta into a shallow bowl. Sprinkle more Pecorino on top, along with the chopped basil. I like to freshly grind some black pepper. It really is a nice balancer for the sweetness of the squash and the pungent nature of the cheese.

Tasting time, my favorite part

Just looking at this Creamy Pasta "risottata" with Squash, Scamorza and Pecorino I am marveled at the creaminess of the sauce and the vibrant yellow color. This brings an ear-to-ear smile on my face. The aroma is wonderful: notes of sweetness from the squash, that earthy acidity of the Scamorza and Pecorino, with hints of basil. It doesn't get any better than this.

I just have to have a forkful. OMG, this is just heavenly, I am at a loss for words, I know, shocking for those of you who know me. I am going to leave it at that. I want you to try and tell me what you think. All I can really say is, I had to get every last smudge of that sauce off the plate.

Buon Appetito!

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