High Protein Squash Macaroni
Tofu and squash of choice creamy macaroni. Perfect for lunch pots or larger portions for dinner.
Equipment
- 1 Blender or food processor You could use a hand blender
- 2 Large sauce pans Could use one; cook the butternut squash first and then the pasta.
- 1 Small/medium frying pan
- 1 Kettle or hot water dispenser
Ingredients
- 1 Tbsp Olive oil You could substitute for oil spray to reduce calories
- 3 Garlic cloves
- 2 Small Onions Finely chopped
- 1 Sweet pepper Chopped
- 1 Large Butternut squash Can use other types of squash. Around 750g when chopped into 1 inch cubes.
- 250 Gram Silken tofu Drained
- 500 Gram Macaroni
- Juice of half a lemon
- 1 Tsp Chilli flakes Increase the amount if you like it spicy!
- 2 Tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 Tsp Salt
- 1 Tsp Pepper
- 1 Vegetable stock cube or stock pot
- 250 Ml Hot water
Instructions
- Fill a large sauce pan with water, add a teaspoon of salt and bring to a boil.
- Chop all your vegetables ready. Add your squash cubes into the boiling water and boil until tender. This will take around 5-10 minutes.
- Cook pasta as per packet instruction.
- Meanwhile, add your oil or oil spray to a frying pan over a medium heat. Add the chopped onions and garlic and fry for around 5 minutes. Take care not to burn, as this will give an unpleasant bitter taste to your sauce. Add the chopped pepper and the chilli flakes and fry until pepper is soft.
- Drain your cooked butternut squash cubes and cool them down by rinsing under a cold tap. Then add these to your blender. You may need to blend in stages depending on how big your blender or food processor is. Add the cooked onion, garlic and pepper to the blender. Add the drained tofu, mustard and salt and pepper. Blend until smooth. Add in the stock until you gain a smooth sauce consistency.
- If you do not have a food processor or blender you could add the butternut squash to the frying pan with the onion, garlic and pepper and use a hand blender to blend until smooth.
- Add juice of lemon at the end and adjust seasoning to your liking.
- Drain pasta (keep some of the water) add sauce and mix. If you need to loosen the sauce, use a splash of the pasta sauce.
Notes
Makes 6 medium lunch pots or 4 larger portions for dinner. Calories listed are for the lunch pots.
Perfect served with a fresh salad and topped with crispy chickpeas! Please see my recipe for crispy chickpea topping.