This Healthy Butternut Squash Pasta is just 214 calories and has 9.6g of protein for a 2 cup serving!
This low calorie butternut squash pasta can also be made vegan, gluten-free, low sodium and more. See the tips below to modify this healthy recipe to suit your own dietary needs.
Perfect for a quick dinner, this low calorie pasta dish is done in just 25 minutes!
Healthy Butternut Squash Pasta
What You’ll Find in this Article:
Ingredients in Low Calorie Butternut Squash Pasta
I used regular pasta to make this low calorie squash pasta. But you can swap it out for protein pasta if you prefer. See the “Healthy Tips and Swaps” below for low carb and high protein tips.
Shopping List for Skinny Butternut Squash Pasta:
- Pasta shells
- Olive Oil Spray
- Yellow onion
- Garlic cloves
- Butternut squash
- Unsweetened almond milk
- Low-sodium vegetable broth
- Baby spinach
- Parmesan cheese
- Walnuts
- Measurements in recipe card below
How to Make Low Calorie Butternut Squash Pasta
This recipe is so easy to make! I use an immersion blender to make the sauce, but if you don’t have one you can use a countertop blender.
To use a traditional blender simply cool the sauce to room temperature, add to the blender and vent it (if there is any heat left it will pressurize). Blend until smooth and then add back to the pot and heat up again before adding in the pasta, spinach, cheese and walnuts.
How to Make Skinny Butternut Squash Pasta:
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package.
- Meanwhile, heat a large sauce pot over medium heat. Spray with olive oil and add in the onions. Cook for 5 minutes until soft.
- Add in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add the butternut squash, milk, and broth. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the butternut squash is soft.
- Remove the pot from the heat and use an immersion blender to blend the sauce until smooth.
- Add the cooked pasta, spinach, 1/2 of the parmesan cheese and walnuts to the sauce and mix well.
- Sprinkle the remaining cheese and walnuts over the top and serve hot.
Healthy Tips and Swaps
You can easily modify this recipe to suit your own dietary needs! Follow these easy tips to boost protein, lower carbs, make it a vegan dish and more.
Low Carb Butternut Squash Pasta
To make this a low carb butternut squash pasta simply swap out the traditional pasta for protein pasta. I like Banza chickpea pasta in this recipe.
Gluten-Free Butternut Squash Pasta
To make this a gluten free butternut squash pasta you can swap out the pasta for gluten free pasta. Use your favorite and feel free to swap out the shells for penne if that is an easier gluten free pasta to find.
Low Sodium Butternut Squash Pasta
You can keep the sodium low in this butternut squash pasta by choosing low sodium broth. I also like to cut out 1/2 of the cheese to reduce sodium more. And be sure to get unsalted nuts too.
High Protein Butternut Squash Pasta
You can easily boost the protein in this butternut squash pasta by swapping out the pasta for protein pasta. I like Banza chickpea protein pasta. You can also double the nuts, and add 2-4 scoops of unsweetened collagen powder to the sauce to really pump up the protein in this recipe.
Vegan Butternut Squash Pasta
To make this a vegan butternut squash pasta swap out the parmesan cheese for nutritional yeast. You’ll also want to add 1/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste) to the sauce if you skip the salty parmesan cheese.
Healthy Butternut Squash Pasta Recipe
This Healthy Butternut Squash Pasta is just 214 calories for 2 cups!! I know you’ll love this quick vegetarian pasta dish, here are more low calorie pasta recipes I think you’ll love.
More Low Calorie Pasta Recipes:
Low Calorie Butternut Squash Pasta
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 (16-ounce) box pasta shells (or gluten-free)
- Olive Oil Spray
- 1 yellow onion chopped
- 3 garlic cloves chopped
- 2 cups butternut squash cubes
- 2 cups unsweetened almond milk
- ½ cup low-sodium vegetable broth
- 1 cup baby spinach
- ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts
Instructions
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package.
- Meanwhile, heat a large sauce pot over medium heat. Spray with olive oil and add in the onions. Cook for 5 minutes until soft.
- Add in the garlic and cook for 2 minutes until fragrant.
- Add the butternut squash, milk, and broth. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the butternut squash is soft.
- Remove the pot from the heat and use an immersion blender to blend the sauce until smooth. (Alternatively you can cool the sauce and add to a vented countertop blender an blend until smooth).
- Add the cooked pasta, spinach, 1/2 of the parmesan cheese and walnuts to the sauce and mix well.
- Sprinkle the remaining cheese and walnuts over the top and serve hot.
Nutrition
Nutrition and Calories in Butternut Squash Pasta
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