I recently found pre-made butternut squash noodles at Whole Foods – which I highly recommend.
It’s A LOT easier than spiralizing that sucker yourself, but it is also a bit more expensive. It was a total impulse by for me and also totally worth it because it was really effin’ good. I immediately thought making butternut squash carbonara would be amazing – and I was right. My favorite veggies to spiralize:
- potato, white or Japanese (I can’t stand sweet potatoes)
- cucumber
- carrot
- zucchini – I actually don’t eat zucchini because it hurts my stomach but I hear they’re absolutely delicious when spiralized
This is my favorite spiralizer. It’s easy and actually a bit cheaper than other popular options.
Butternut squash is a wonderful substitution for pasta for several reasons. First, it’s a vegetable.
Butternut squash is a great source of:
- potassium
- folate
- B6
- fiber
- folate
- vitamin C
- manganese
Second, most pasta is derived from wheat. Most wheat has been so hybridized and altered over thousands of years that it no longer resembles the wheat our ancestors ate. It’s inflammatory, difficult to digest and high on the glycemic index.
Butternut squash, on the other hand, is none of these things.
It’s healthy, it’s filling and it’s much lower carb than traditional wheat-based pasta. Plus it has way more flavor.
You know how we’ve been told to “eat healthy whole grains?” While I agree that some grains can be a part of a healthy diet – almost everyone can benefit from switching out wheat products for vegetables. Wheat is a high carbohydrate food with low nutrient density. Butternut squash is an excellent and delicious substitution. Feel free to try it with a different pasta sauce, like alfredo – which I think would be amazing paired with butternut squash noodles. Just make sure to use real, grass-fed and preferably raw butter and cream!
Butternut Squash Carbonara
Ingredients
- 1 whole butternut squash medium sized (spiralize using THIS)
- 1 tbsp butter
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- 4 big strips of bacon preferably thick cut and fatty
- parsley to top
- optional but recommended: pastured egg yolk see notes
Instructions
- Chop the bacon into small bites and sauté over medium heat.
- Drain the fat and save for later. Set the bacon aside.
- Add the butter over medium heat to the same pan.
- Add the noodles and soften.
- Add the garlic.
- Add the bacon and toss it all together.
- Add salt and pepper, top with parsley if using.
