Butternut Squash Baked Feta Pasta

This recipe is such a good one!! Most creamy pasta recipes that I make source the cream factor from heavy whipping cream but this one swaps that out for baked feta cheese!! It's such a good sub. I love using Athenos brand for feta cheese, it gets super creamy when you bake it which is PERFECT for pasta dishes!! 

This recipe is totes inspired by my bestie @grilledcheesesocial, linking her original recipe here! We made a similar version together a couple years ago and she is the viral queen for all things baked feta pasta!

Recipe makes enough for 3-4 serving sizes or 5-6 smaller side portions! (Most of my recipes call for 1/2 lb of pasta or 2 servings. If you want to make that amount, just use 1/2 lb of pasta and use a bit less of the pasta sauce. And actually, if you reserve some of it before you thin it out with pasta water, it makes a REALLY good dip!!)

What you need:

• 3/4 lb fettuccini pasta (3/4 of a standard box)
• ​10 oz Athenos Feta Cheese Chunk (about 3/4 of the 16 oz block)
• 1 peeled and cubed butternut squash
• 10 garlic cloves
• 1/4 cup evoo
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• Reserved pasta water for thinning out the sauce

What to do:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Add the peeled and cubed butternut squash, garlic, evoo and salt and pepper to a baking dish. Pour the olive oil into the dish and mix until everything is evenly coated. Make a space in the center for the Athenos Feta Chunk and place it in the dish. Top it off with a splash of olive oil and a pinch of both salt and pepper. Bake for 30 minutes.
3. Time the pasta prep up with the baking time. I usually bring a pot of salted water to a boil and cook the fettuccini when there's 10 minutes left of baking the squash and feta. Don't forget to save some of the pasta water!! 
4. Pour the contents of the baking dish into a food processor or blender and pulse until smooth. Check the sauce and add in pasta water to adjust the texture. I ended up using around 1/2-3/4 cup.
5. Pour the sauce over the pasta and mix it all up.
6. Top with more feta cheese before serving!