Acorn Squash, Bacon and Blue Cheese Penne

By cmschnettler

Ingredients

• 16 ounces (one box) penne pasta
• 12 ounces bacon (one package)
• 1 tablespoon bacon grease
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 acorn squash
• 1/2 cup blue cheese crumbles
• 1/4 cup cream cheese
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth or stock
• 1/2 tsp salt

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from lawrence.com

Preparation

Step 1

Slice your squash into 8 or 10 wedges. Drizzle with olive oil, and lightly dust with salt and pop it in the microwave for six minutes. Check for doneness and add minutes until it's soft throughout. You can microwave the cloves of garlic right along with the squash.

Meanwhile, start a pot of water boiling for your pasta. Salt the water — a lot.

While all of this is going, start your simple sauce. Mix the blue cheese, cream cheese and chicken broth in a pan over medium heat and stir until melted and fully combined.

When the pasta is ready, drain it and return it to the stock pot. Toss in the squash pieces and the bacon, and add the cheese sauce. Add a tablespoon of bacon grease to the mix just because you can, and lightly salt everything if you think it needs it. I didn't think I would need to with that cheese and bacon, but it did require a small salt upgrade to satisfy my salt-loving palette. Also, add the cooked garlic (after you get the hard peels off).

I simmered this all over medium heat until the sauce thickened and made a nice coating over the pasta. Serve!