Leftover Love: Bacon Squash Bucatini

After I recently made a squash soup, I had a little less than a 1/2 cup of acorn squash puree leftover.  We were looking for a quick and easy meal on a work night, so a pasta seemed like a great idea.  While boiling the bucatini to al dente, I browned three strips of bacon in a non stick pan.  After draining the fat (and chopping the bacon into small pieces), I lightly coated the bottom of the same pan with EV olive oil, added two cloves of chopped garlic, a pinch of chili flakes and gently heated. I then added the squash puree and a small handful of chopped rosemary and the bacon.  I then scraped the bacon bits that adhered to bottom of the pan from browning and added a touch of water to thin the mixture out a bit.

After adding the drained bucatini to the squash mixture, I grated some Parmigiano Reggiano onto the pasta, tasted, seasoned with salt and pepper, and served with a side salad. 

The squash added a creamy texture to the pasta, but it wasn't at all as rich as a cream sauce.  It was more like the texture of a carbonara. The squash added a touch of sweetness that was a nice foil to garlic and bacon.  Note to self: leftovers are only as boring as you make them.