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Dinner recipe · from the recipe book

Turkey Butternut Sage-Style Pasta Bake

Tender turkey breast and penne in a silky roasted-butternut cream sauce with spinach, baked under a crisp, nutty Parmesan crust.

Turkey Butternut Sage-Style Pasta Bake

Ingredients

  • 1 lb500 gTurkey breast, boneless skinlesscut into 3/4-inch pieces
  • 10 oz280 gPasta, dryshort shape such as penne
  • 12⅔ cups3,000 gWater
  • 2¾ cups cubed400 gButternut squash, peeledcut into 1/2-inch cubes
  • 1 medium110 gYellow oniondiced
  • 3 cloves9 gGarlicminced
  • 4 cups loosely packed120 gBaby spinach
  • 1 cup240 gLow-sodium chicken broth
  • 1¼ cups (300 ml)300 gMilk, 2%
  • 1½ tbsp20 gOlive oil
  • 1 tsp1 gDried thyme
  • ½ tsp0.5 gDried rosemarycrumbled
  • ⅛ tsp0.3 gGround nutmeg
  • ¾ tsp4 gSalt
  • ½ tsp1 gBlack pepper
  • ½ cup grated50 gGrated Parmesan

Steps

  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) and lightly coat a 9x13-inch baking dish with a little of the olive oil (about a quarter of it).
  2. Bring the water to a boil in a large pot, cook the pasta 2 minutes less than the package says, then drain and set aside.
  3. While the water heats, warm another quarter of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Season the turkey breast with half the salt and half the black pepper, brown it 5–6 minutes until cooked through to 165°F (74°C), then move it to a plate.
  4. Add the remaining half of the olive oil to the skillet, then the onion and butternut; cook 6 minutes, stirring, until the onion softens.
  5. Stir in the garlic, thyme and rosemary for 30 seconds, then add the chicken broth, cover and simmer 10–12 minutes until the butternut is very tender.
  6. Mash the butternut mixture well in the skillet with a potato masher (or blend it carefully), then stir in the milk, nutmeg and the remaining half each of salt and black pepper to make a creamy sauce.
  7. Stir the spinach into the hot sauce until wilted, then fold in the drained pasta and the cooked turkey.
  8. Spread the mixture in the baking dish and scatter the parmesan evenly over the top.
  9. Bake uncovered 20–25 minutes until bubbling at the edges and golden on top; rest 5 minutes before serving.

Contains: Milk, Gluten.

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Saved in the Every Helping recipe book on October 24, 2026.

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