Butternut Squash and Bacon Pasta Pot
Dried squash, dried greens, and a Parmesan cream sauce built from powders in one pot.
- calories
- 780
- weight
- 6 oz
- cal / oz
- 130
- protein
- 28 g
- serves
- 1, scales
- prep
- 5 min
- cook
- 15 min
- total time
- 20 min
- water
- 600 ml boiled
- cost
- $$
Calorie and protein figures are my own estimates, good enough for planning a food bag and not meant as precise nutrition data.
- Dinner
- Canister stove
- Liquid fuel
- Alcohol / Esbit
- Backpacking
- Car camping
- Basecamp
- Winter / snow
- Nut free
- One pot
- Dehydrate ahead
- Shelf stable
- Basic
Ingredients
| Small pasta | 2 oz | whole wheat shells or elbows; small shapes cook fastest |
|---|---|---|
| Dried butternut squash | 1/2 cup | roast with olive oil and salt, then dehydrate until brittle |
| Dried collard greens or kale | 1/3 cup | crumbled; kale rehydrates quicker |
| Whole milk powder | 3 tbsp | |
| Grated parmesan | 1/4 cup | the dry shaker kind travels without a cooler |
| Real bacon bits | 1/4 cup | shelf-stable, in a pouch |
| Dried minced onion | 1 tbsp | |
| Garlic powder | 1/2 tsp | |
| Dried rosemary | 1/2 tsp | crush it between your fingers |
| Paprika | 1/4 tsp | |
| Nutmeg | a pinch | |
| Cayenne or black pepper | to taste | |
| Salt | 1/2 tsp | |
| Olive oil | 1 tbsp |
Method
- Bring 600 ml of water to a boil. Add the squash, greens, onion, and salt and let them sit at a simmer for five minutes so they start drinking.
- Add the pasta. Simmer, stirring often, until the pasta is soft and most of the water is gone, about eight minutes. Add a splash more water if the bottom starts catching.
- Kill the heat. Stir in the milk powder, parmesan, garlic, rosemary, paprika, nutmeg, and pepper. Keep stirring until the powder dissolves and the sauce thickens.
- Fold in the bacon bits and the oil. Put the lid on for two minutes, then eat.
The original is an oven casserole with fresh squash, half and half, and a cheese sauce. None of that travels. Roasting and dehydrating the squash at home does the same flavor work in a fraction of the weight, and whole milk powder plus dry parmesan rebuilds the cream sauce with hot water instead of a fridge.
Cooking the pasta in the same water that rehydrates the squash and greens is the point. The starch it sheds is what makes the sauce cling rather than pool. Add the dairy off the heat: milk powder on a live flame will scorch to the bottom of the pot and you will be scrubbing it in the dark.
Packing
Dry ingredients other than the milk powder and parmesan go in one bag. Bag the dairy separately and add it off heat, or it curdles and sticks. Bacon and oil ride on their own.
Variations
- Instant potato flakes, a tablespoon at a time, will rescue a sauce that came out thin.
- Skip the bacon and use a bouillon cube for a vegetarian version.
- Lentil or brown rice pasta keeps it gluten-free and adds protein.
https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/butternut-squash-pasta-bake