There’s something about the first cool night in October that makes me crave pasta with butternut squash. The whole kitchen smells like sage butter and brown sugar, and the pasta turns that deep golden color that only happens when the oven’s been running for an hour. My grandma used to call these her “harvest suppers” — a big bowl of something saucy and orange, a hunk of crusty bread to mop it up, and everyone crowded around the kitchen table before the soup was even done. I’ve pulled together twelve of my favorite cozy autumn pasta dishes, from bubbling bakes and rustic lasagnas to a creamy cacio e pepe with a butternut twist that changed the way I think about weeknight pasta. Each one is a true keeper for fall — bookmark them, share them with people you love, and let me know which one becomes your family’s new harvest tradition.
What’s Inside
- Butternut Squash Baked Pasta
- Butternut Squash Cacio e Pepe
- Butternut Squash Agnolotti
- Butternut Squash Orzo with Fried Sage
- Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
- Butternut Squash Lasagna
- Brown Butter Butternut Squash Pasta
- Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
- Brown Butter Gnocchi with Butternut Squash and Kale
- Butternut Squash Pasta with Sausage and Spinach
- Roasted Butternut Penne with Parmesan
- Butternut Squash Fettuccine Alfredo with Crispy Sage
The 12 Recipes
From cozy baked pastas to creamy sage-kissed noodles, here’s everything you need to get through sweater weather.
Butternut Squash Baked Pasta
Recipe via Bon Appétit — Andy Baraghani
Andy Baraghani’s weeknight baked pasta is layered with silky squash purée, paccheri tubes, and a toasted hazelnut-basil crumble that crackles on top. The red pepper flakes add a sneaky warmth that makes the whole thing feel like a hug in a baking dish.
Butternut Squash Cacio e Pepe
Recipe via Bon Appétit — Rick Martinez
Rick Martinez’s clever twist on Roman cacio e pepe roasts the squash right in the skillet with sausage and pecorino. Black pepper and brown butter do the heavy lifting, and the whole thing comes together in one pan — minimal cleanup, maximum coziness.
Butternut Squash Agnolotti
Recipe via Bon Appétit — Rick Martinez
If you’ve got a free afternoon and a pasta roller, this is your moment. Tiny pillows of mascarpone-squash filling get tossed in sage brown butter with toasted walnuts — a true showstopper for a Sunday dinner with friends.
Butternut Squash Orzo with Fried Sage
Recipe via Bon Appétit — Kendra Vaculin
Kendra Vaculin uses canned squash purée to make this creamy orzo a true 30-minute weeknight miracle. Crispy sage leaves float on top like little edible confetti, and the risotto-like texture means every bite is unapologetically cozy.
Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce
Recipe via The Cozy Apron — Ingrid Beer
Ingrid Beer’s silky pumpkin sauce gets its deep flavor from three whole heads of slow-roasted garlic. Mascarpone and half-and-half make it decadent without being heavy — toss with fettuccine and a shower of fresh parmesan for the easiest autumn dinner.
Butternut Squash Lasagna
Recipe via The Cozy Apron — Ingrid Beer
This lasagna swaps ricotta for a velvety butternut squash sauce, layered with ground turkey, baby spinach, and gooey mozzarella. Ingrid builds it the way her Nonna did — patiently, with love, and with extra cheese on top.
Brown Butter Butternut Squash Pasta
Recipe via AI-Generated Inspiration — Elowen Thorn
Toasted breadcrumbs, nutty browned butter, and roasted butternut cubes cling to every strand of spaghetti in this simple weeknight dish. A handful of fresh thyme and shaved parmesan make it taste like something from a trattoria in Tuscany.
Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Recipe via AI-Generated Inspiration — Elowen Thorn
Creamy, sharp, and just a little sweet from the roasted squash, this grown-up mac and cheese is the dish I bring to every fall potluck. The crispy sage leaves on top are technically optional but absolutely non-negotiable in my house.
Brown Butter Gnocchi with Butternut Squash and Kale
Recipe via AI-Generated Inspiration — Elowen Thorn
Pillowy store-bought gnocchi get pan-crisped in sage brown butter, then tossed with roasted butternut cubes and ribbons of lacinato kale. Toasted walnuts add the perfect crunch — it tastes like a fancy restaurant dish, made on a Tuesday.
Butternut Squash Pasta with Sausage and Spinach
Recipe via AI-Generated Inspiration — Elowen Thorn
Spicy Italian sausage and a creamy roasted butternut sauce come together in this 30-minute pasta that hits every autumn craving. A few handfuls of baby spinach wilt in at the end for color, and crushed red pepper flakes bring the warmth.
Roasted Butternut Penne with Parmesan
Recipe via AI-Generated Inspiration — Elowen Thorn
Simple, rustic, and impossibly satisfying — roasted butternut cubes, garlicky olive oil, penne, and a generous snowfall of freshly grated parmesan. This is the kind of dish that proves you don’t need a long ingredient list to make something memorable.
Butternut Squash Fettuccine Alfredo with Crispy Sage
Recipe via AI-Generated Inspiration — Elowen Thorn
Classic fettuccine alfredo gets a fall makeover with a swirl of butternut squash purée and a flurry of crispy sage leaves fried in brown butter. Rich without being heavy, this is the date-night-in pasta of my dreams.
That’s a lot of pasta
Honestly, if I had to pick one to make first, it’d be the butternut cacio e pepe from Bon Appétit. The brown butter and toasted peppercorns do something magical with the roasted squash — it tastes like autumn in a bowl, and it comes together in one skillet, which my weeknight self deeply appreciates. But the creamy pumpkin pasta sauce from The Cozy Apron is the one my kids actually request by name, so we make that one most weeks and never hear a single complaint about the green stuff on the side. Cook them all, share them with people you love, and don’t forget to save a little parmesan for sprinkling at the table. That’s the real secret. Oh, and a hunk of warm bread — never skip the bread.
—Elowen Thorn
Sources & Credits
A heartfelt thank you to the food writers, test kitchen cooks, and home cooks who developed and shared these recipes. Every dish below is credited to its original creator and source publication — please visit their sites, leave a comment, and support their work.
- Butternut Squash Baked Pasta — Bon Appétit (recipe by Andy Baraghani)
- Butternut Squash Cacio e Pepe — Bon Appétit (recipe by Rick Martinez)
- Butternut Squash Agnolotti — Bon Appétit (recipe by Rick Martinez)
- Butternut Squash Orzo with Fried Sage — Bon Appétit (recipe by Kendra Vaculin)
- Creamy Pumpkin Pasta Sauce — The Cozy Apron (recipe by Ingrid Beer)
- Butternut Squash Lasagna — The Cozy Apron (recipe by Ingrid Beer)
- Brown Butter Butternut Squash Pasta — AI-Generated Inspiration (recipe by Elowen Thorn)
- Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese — AI-Generated Inspiration (recipe by Elowen Thorn)
- Brown Butter Gnocchi with Butternut Squash and Kale — AI-Generated Inspiration (recipe by Elowen Thorn)
- Butternut Squash Pasta with Sausage and Spinach — AI-Generated Inspiration (recipe by Elowen Thorn)
- Roasted Butternut Penne with Parmesan — AI-Generated Inspiration (recipe by Elowen Thorn)
- Butternut Squash Fettuccine Alfredo with Crispy Sage — AI-Generated Inspiration (recipe by Elowen Thorn)