A Brave New Recipe

I don't normally create a recipe from scratch; usually I alter existing dishes to my specifications. But after having a lovely pasta dish with butternut squash at Il Fornaio in Del Mar, I was craving a something similar at home. So after doing some research, I came up with the following. If you stir it too much the sqash falls apart, so just lightly toss with the sauce and serve.

Cheese Tortellini with Butternut Squash
serves 3-4

1 small butternut squash
2 9-oz packages fresh cheese tortellini
1/2 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped nuts (I prefer pecans)
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 t. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/2 cup cream or half and half (I used fat free half and half and it was great)

First, cook the squash however you prefer. I cut mine in quarters, rub them with olive oil, then bake on a cookie sheet at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. This can be done well in advance, then the rest of the meal comes together very quickly.

Boil water and prepare tortellini according to package instructions. Rinse and set aside. In a frying pan on medium-low heat, melt butter and heat just until it stars to brown. Add nuts and stir for a minute or two, but don't let the butter burn. Add the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and cream and stir. Cut warm squash into small bitesized pieces, gently toss with butter sauce, and pour over pasta on individual plates.

Yummy yum yum. This is a sweet pasta dish, which is unusual, but I though it was delish. All my favorite fall flavors! I tried the sauce over regular pasta and that was good too, but the creaminess of the cheese tortellini added the perfect touch. If you don't like it I'm very sorry, but what's not to love about butter, cinnamon and cream?