Pesto Pasta with Butternut Squash & Langoustines
Wow - call them what you will: Langoustines, Norway Lobster, Nephrops Norvegicus, no matter what you call them, they are delicious. Slightly more sweet and tender than lobster meat, they are the perfect pasta pairing. And so easy! We love to take seafood items normally considered a delicacy and bring them into our home kitchens. Try this one out and let us know how it goes!
Recipe
Pesto Pasta with Butternut Squash & Langoustines by Nutritionist Alicia Spangenberger
total time: 40 minutes
servings: 2
Ingredients:
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded & cubed
1 lemon, juice & zest
2 cloves garlic, 1 minced, 1 whole
2 cups grated parmesan cheese
1/2 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
2 cups baby spinach
1/4 cup olive oil
5 tbsp butter
2 servings angel hair pasta
1/2 cup raw walnuts, chopped
6 frozen Langoustines, whole
Instructions:
You’re going to need to separate pots of boiling water so fill them both up with a quart of water and bring to a boil.
Melt 4 tbsp of butter on low/medium heat in a separate pan. Prep your butternut squash into 1/2 inch cubes. Let the butter bubble into golden in color, then add 1 clove minced garlic & the butternut squash. Sauté for 15 minutes or until squash is cooked through.
While the squash cooks, put the other clove of garlic, parmesan cheese, parsley, spinach, juice & zest of the lemon into a food processor. Pulse and then drizzle olive oil in until it becomes a pesto sauce consistency (see pictures).
Now that your water is boiling, cook 3 Langoustines at a time, for 3 minutes, then remove from the water with tongs and set aside to cool.
In the second pot of boiling water (make sure it’s salted), cook your pasta, then drain. Add pasta, 1 tbsp of butter and pesto mixture back to the pasta pot and stir to coat the pasta with the pesto.
In a small pan over medium heat, toast your chopped walnuts for 2-3 minutes.
Once langoustines are cool enough to handle, lay them on their sides and press down on tail with your palm to break the shell (you can use kitchen shears as well). Remove the shell and add the tail meat to the pan with your butternut squash.
Plate your pasta first, then your butternut squash, Langoustine mixture and finally your chopped walnuts. Finish with some lemon, extra parmesan and fresh cracked pepper and enjoy!