Rustic Kale-Butternut Squash Skillet Pasta

Sometimes I just like to experiment in the kitchen and see where it gets me.

I love butternut squash and kale and made it my goal to put more of it into our diet because of its flavor and nutritional value. Now, there are many, many, dishes on Pinterest and the interwebs about dishes that feature both ingredients but I like to just come up with my own occasionally.

It was a cold, rainy day and I wanted something hearty with cheese and meat but also have some actual nutritional value to the dish.

After digging through my fridge and pantry I came up with my ingredients, and got started.  If you actually plan ahead to make this, it would be easy to double or triple the recipe.

Rustic Kale-Butternut Squash Skillet Pasta

(serves 2)

-          ¼ - ½ beef kielbasa, sliced
-          2 gloves of garlic, minced
-          1 tbsp olive oil or butter

-          3 cups of milk

-          ½ bag of noodles or shell pasta
-          Salt, pepper, onion powder to taste

-          1 cup of kale, cut

-          ¾ cup of butternut squash, diced

(I used half a bag of Path of Life Kale and Butternut squash, thawed!)

-          1 cup cheddar cheese, grated

Start by dicing up all your ingredients.  If you have a bag of kale and butternut like I did, this part is a lot easier!

Preheat oven to 375F.

In an oven-safe pan, fry the kielbasa lightly in some oil, together with the garlic. Once garlic turns slightly brown add the milk, noodles and seasoning. Combine well and reduce heat to a medium-high.

Add in the Kale and Butternut squash, stirring occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom.

Cook until noodles are almost done.

Turn off heat, sprinkle with cheese and put in the oven for 10-15min – until the cheese is melted completely.


I served mine with some Feel Good Foods Vegetable Dumplings.  I think it would be good with a salad, too.

Enjoy!