TikTok Remix: Feta, Tomato, and Butternut Squash Pasta Bake

Feta Squash Pasta Bake Pin

I have to admit that I have not yet used TikTok.I have seen videos that have been sent to me or shown up on my other social media feeds, but I am not an early or even late adopter of this platform. Maybe one day I won’t be able to say “No,” and that day almost came when I discovered the Feta and Tomato pasta bake. The recipe first appeared on my Pinterest, I hadn’t even known it was a viral craze until reading that post. I had always thought of TikToc as the place people do silly inedible things with food, but this one looked good and I had to try it.

I have made the original version a couple of times now, and it was really good every time. The first time I stuck to the recipe, but added spicy Italian Sausage I cooked off when I added the pasta. The second time, I used half the amount of tomatoes and added zucchini and shallots. This time I made it I really changed it up. I wasn’t in the mood for zucchini, I was browsing vegetables to see what else might work. I started looking up other tomato cream sauces for further inspiration. I came across butternut squash used in just about the same way, I wished I had thought of it!

Feta, Tomato, and Butternut Squash Pasta Bake

0 from 0 votes
Course: EntreCuisine: Comfort
Servings

7

servings
Prep time

15

minutes
Cooking time

45

minutes
Total time

1

hour 
Cook Mode

Keep the screen of your device on

Ingredients

  • Vegetables
  • 1 lb 1 Butternut Squash, 1" cubes

  • 1 small pk 1 Cherry Tomatoes

  • 1 1 Shallot, halved and sliced

  • 6 cloves 6 garlic, peeled and halved

  • Dried Spices
  • 1 tsp 1 Oregano

  • 1 tsp 1 Garlic Powder

  • 1 tsp 1 Onion Powder

  • Salt & Pepper

  • Red Pepper Flakes

  • The Rest
  • 1 block 1 Greek Feta (about 3/4lb, in liquid best)

  • 1/2 box 1/2 Pasta of choice (though I don't recommend anything in the spaghetti family)

  • 1/2 lb 1/2 Spicy (or sweet) Italian sausage

  • Fresh Basil

  • Fresh Thyme

Directions

  • Preheat oven to 400F.
  •  In an oven-safe 9x13 baking dish, add all the vegetables and garlic.
  • Drizzle the vegetables with olive oil and toss until coated.
  • Sprinkle the dried spices (except red pepper flakes), salt & pepper, then stir again.
  • Make a little space in the middle and wiggle the feta block in there. 
  • Drizzle the block with some olive oil, and sprinkle some dried thyme & pepper on top. Sprinkle crushed red pepper over the whole dish to taste.
  • Bake, uncovered, for 35 mins. Start the water for your pasta and cook as directed.
  • Once the pasta is going, cook the Italian sausage in a skillet. I like to leave it in small chunks, but you can cook it through however you like. Save ½ cup of pasta water.
  • When the feta & vegetables are done, remove them from the oven, then cover them, and return for an additional 10 minutes. This will help soften the squash for mashing.
  • After the feta & vegetables are done, mash everything together with a fork until as smooth and combined as you like. I like to leave some chunks of squash.
  • Add the pasta and sausage and mix adding a little pasta water to smooth it out. Break up the basil and thyme and mix those in as well.

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