This is so easy, friend. You literally put everything in a pan, let it simmer, and buzz it up with your immersion blender. That’s it! And you can use pre-cubed butternut squash as an easy short cut.

Use this delicious right away or freeze it for later. It’s great on pasta, drizzled on grain bowls, used on pizza or anywhere you’d use marinara sauce.

Why you’ll love Squash Sauce For Pasta

This is a very easy "dump and walk away" kind of situation. And even better if you buy pre-cut butternut squash. I don't want anyone to lose a finger making this.

After the sauce has simmered at medium-low heat for 30 minutes and the vegetables are soft, buzz it all up with an immersion blender.

Don't have an immersion blender? Blend it in your countertop blender, but seriously consider getting an immersion blender because it's one of the most handy gadgets you'll use. 

Ingredients for Butternut Squash Sauce

Everything here is easy to find at the store!

• Tomato paste
• Butternut squash cubes
• Pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)
• Carrots
• Applesauce
• Maple Syrup
• Coconut Milk (or unsweetened almond milk or heavy cream)
• Lemon Juice
• Garlic
• Simple Herbs & Spices
• Ghee or butter

(The ghee is optional if you'd rather use that than butter -- here's a tutorial if you want one. It's easy to make! How To Make Ghee)

Storing leftover Squash Pasta Sauce

You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for up to a week. It also freezes beautifully! I love using these freezer-safe deli containers for freezing sauces, soups, and broth.

Want to make your own homemade pumpkin puree or squash puree? Click on this post: How to cook a squash or a pumpkin in your Instant Pot.

Pumpkin and Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce variations

Creamy pumpkin pasta sauce -- For an extra creamy texture and a boost of pumpkin flavor, use whole can of pumpkin (You're welcome. No one likes leftover canned pumpkin sitting around. haha) and reduce butternut to ½ cup. Replace sage with cinnamon or pumpkin pie spice. Double the amount of coconut milk or heavy cream if you aren't wanting to make a vegan pumpkin pasta sauce.

Roasted Butternut Pasta Sauce -- Try roasting the butternut squash cubes and carrots together before simmering them with the other ingredients for a deeper, roasted flavor!

If you like this recipe, try my Balsamic Roasted Tomato Sauce!

Ways to use Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce

I love that it still tastes enough like marinara sauce that you can use it anywhere you'd normally use marinara. This delicious sauce has a great savory flavor with a hint of sweetness from the squash and maple. 

Serve it over any type of pasta, make it into a meat sauce with ground meat, layer it in a lasagna, use in pasta recipes or as pizza sauce (totally trying this ASAP), or as a dipper for.... anything you'd dip into marinara. My first thought is mozzarella sticks. Heh.

Any way you use it, it'll make ordinary weeknight dinner feel a little more special knowing you made that sauce from scratch. Things like that make me feel super cheffy.

NOTE: it's particularly good with parmesan cheese, however you plan to use it. The slightly sweet flavor of the sauce pairs so well with salty parm. Mmm.

More Butternut Squash Recipes

Have extra butternut? Here are a few more recipes on my site!

Spiralized Butternut Squash Breakfast Bake is great for brunch or a breakfast meal prep option for the week! It reheats wonderfully.

Chai Maple Roasted Butternut Squash is a delicious non-traditional Thanksgiving side dish or anytime you need something cozy alongside a pot roast.

Vegetarian Paleo Chili is loaded with butternut and sweet potatoes and its unique spice combination makes this a fun addition to your chili collection.

Kale Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash & Apples is a hearty fall salad that's both light, filling, and seasonal.

Apple-Squash Soup with Bacon, Chipotle Lime Squash Soup, & Paleo Indian Butternut Squash Soup are my favorite pureed squash soups!

If you make one of my recipes, I'd love to see! Post it on social media and tag me at @perrysplate or #perrysplate so I can send you some love!

Squash Sauce for Pasta FAQS

Pumpkin Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce

Yield: About 5 cups

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes

I loved that in this Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce, the tomato base takes a backseat to the squash and pumpkin flavors in this fall-inspired pasta sauce! It's also a copycat version of the Autumnal Harvest Pasta Sauce at Trader Joe's.

Print

Ingredients

• ⅓ cup tomato paste
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 ½ cups cubed butternut squash
• ½ cup coconut milk
• 2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
• ⅓ cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3 Tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon onion powder
• 1 small garlic clove, minced or grated
• 1 Tablespoon lemon juice
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon ground sage
• ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 2-inch sprig of fresh rosemary (or ¼ teaspoon dried)
• 2 Tablespoons ghee or butter (optional)

Instructions

1. In a medium sauce pan whisk together the tomato paste with 2 cups of water. Add the rest of the ingredients (except the ghee/butter). For the rosemary, slide your fingers along the stem in the opposite direction of leaf growth to easily remove the leaves. Give them a mince before putting them in the pot.
2. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium low and simmer the mixture for 30 minutes. The carrots and squash should be very soft.
3. Use an immersion blender to blend it until smooth. (Use a countertop blender in batches if you don't have an immersion blender.)
4. Add the ghee/butter and stir until completely melted. Taste, and add more salt or lemon juice if you think it needs it.
5. Use immediately or let it cool to room temperature and store it in an airtight container, chilled, for up to a week.

Notes

• The ghee/butter is optional. It gives the sauce a richer flavor, but if you'd like to make this recipe vegan you can use a vegan butter, extra-virgin olive oil, or omit it entirely.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  Mueller Austria Ultra-Stick 500 Watt 9-Speed Immersion Multi-Purpose Hand Blender

Nutrition Information

Yield 10 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 106Total Fat 6gSaturated Fat 5gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 10mgSodium 236mgCarbohydrates 13gFiber 3gSugar 7gProtein 1g

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

This post may contain affiliate links. Any purchases made by using these links won't cost you any extra and helps keep my content free. These links may be Amazon links as I am part of the Amazon Associate Program.

The post Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce appeared first on Perry's Plate.

Yeah, I know. The fifth chai recipe in just a few weeks. What can I say? I’m obsessed! When I made these paleo gingerbread waffles using my Homemade Chai Spice Blend, I was surprised how close it came to traditional gingerbread spices! You still get that familiar taste of ginger, cloves, and cinnamon with a little bit of something extra — that you can’t put your finger on, but you love it.

My 5-year-old was home from school that day so I put her to work. I can’t believe how lanky she’s getting. Those arms, man. And it still surprises me how fair she is since I’m rather dark and my husband is a quarter Mexican with jet black hair and olive skin — the only blonde-haired, blue-eyed member of our family. Our little ball of recessive genes.

OK, don’t hate me for this, but splitting the eggs and whipping the egg whites separately is really the best option for waffles. If you REALLY don’t want to do it, you can just put them in whole, but I feel like the waffles are floppier that way and don’t have as much fluff.

Also, I can usually get an extra waffle or two out of the batch because whipped egg whites creates more volume in the batter.

I swear, I’ve been making waffles for most of my life and almost every batch will have at least one waffle that spills out the sides. *facepalm*

I don’t know why I keep overestimating my waffle iron’s capacity. We were gifted a Belgian waffle iron when we got married that lasted about a decade. When it died I replaced it with a traditional waffle iron. (this Cuisinart waffle iron which is inexpensive and gets the job done. I would love to spring for this double Belgian waffle iron, but…. storage space.)

It took me a while to get used to putting half as much batter in my new iron. Overfills ALL. THE. TIME. And a few years later I’m still doing it. Can anyone relate or am I just destined to have a crusty waffle iron my whole life?

Want to know a secret? Don't stack your waffles. It'll make them soggy faster.

Put them on a wire rack on a cookie sheet, and try not to overlap them too much. Then put them in your oven on the warming setting. It'll keep some of that fresh-from-the-iron crispness.

No, this isn't leftover cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving. (Our leftovers went the way of Paleo Orange Cranberry Bars. Twice.)

I actually bought more cranberries (At Costco. *Facepalm* Triple batch it is!) to make some paleo Wassailed Cranberry Sauce so I could put it on these waffles. It was a round about way of getting what I wanted, but it was worth it!

And now I have over a quart of extra cranberry sauce for something else. But if we're being honest here, it'll probably end up on a couple more batches of these paleo gingerbread waffles.

I mixed the cranberry sauce with some whipped coconut cream to make a creamy sweet-tart topping for my waffles. If you can handle some dairy, I highly recommend using real whipped cream.

A sprinkle of pomegranate arils was the perfect touch!

These waffles are on the sweet side because I was anticipating a more tart topping. If you decide to serve them with something sweeter you can hold back on the sweetener in the waffle batter.

Or not. #Christmastime

Chai Paleo Gingerbread Waffles with Pomegranate & Cranberry Cream

Yield: Makes 6 round waffles

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

These aren't ordinary paleo gingerbread waffles -- chai spice gives them a familiar flavor with a hint of something interesting. And cranberry cream? *Swoon*

Print

Ingredients

Toggle ingredient group

• 1 cup tapioca flour
• ½ cup blanched almond flour
• ½ cup coconut flour
• 1 Tablespoon Homemade Chai Spice Blend
• 6 Tablespoons coconut sugar or preferred dry sweetener
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 3 eggs, separated
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
• ⅓ cup molasses
• ½ cup melted coconut oil
• 1 cup prepared cranberry sauce
• 1 cup coconut cream, whipped (see note)
• Arils from 1 large pomegranate

Instructions

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flours, chai spice, coconut sugar, baking soda, and salt.
2. Separate the eggs, putting the yolks into the bowl with the dry mixture and the whites in a separate, smaller bowl. (Don't mix in the yolks quite yet.)
3. To that bowl, add 3 eggs, applesauce, molasses, almond flour, and coconut oil. Mix it together only after you have added all of the wet ingredients.
4. Whip the egg whites using an electric hand mixer until soft peaks form.
5. Add the whites to the batter and GENTLY fold them in using a rubber spatula, scraping from the bottom and folding the batter over. The batter will be fluffy and aerated when you're done.
6. Cook the waffles in a heated waffle iron sprayed with non-stick spray (I like coconut oil spray) according to the manufacturer's directions.
7. Clean off your beaters and then use your hand mixer again to whip the coconut cream, if it's hard. Beat until it's smooth and soft. Stir in the cranberry sauce and set it aside until ready to use.
8. Serve the waffles with a dollop of cranberry cream and a sprinkle of pomegranate arils.

Notes

Nat's Notes:

1. You can find canned coconut cream in some grocery stores or online. If you have trouble finding it, you can use the separated cream from 2-3 cans of chilled coconut milk.

2. If you put the cranberry cream in the fridge for a while before eating it will harden again. I recommend just letting it sit out if you plan on eating soon. Or prepping it immediately before eating.

Disclosure: This post contains Amazon affiliate links. Purchases made by using these links doesn’t cost you any extra and helps to keep my content free.

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I love this recipe for paleo pancakes because they're fluffy and sweet and they seems more dessert-like than should be allowable for breakfast. The pancakes themselves are gluten free, grain free, dairy free, and naturally sweetened.

I like to pull this recipe out for our Valentine's Day breakfast with our kids. Some years we do a Valentine's Waffle Board or a Gluten-Free Crepe Bar. 

The nice thing is that you can top these chocolate pancakes as naturally or as decadently as you like! They're easy to make, too, with ingredients that are widely available.

Ingredients for Chocolate Paleo Pancakes

For this paleo pancake recipe you'll need a couple different kinds of grain-free flour and a few other things...

• blanched almond flour (not almond meal)
• tapioca or arrowroot flour/starch
• cocoa powder
• baking soda
• salt
• eggs
• unsweetened applesauce
• honey or pure maple syrup
• melted coconut oil or ghee
• vanilla extract
• stevia (optional)
• fresh berries & honey for serving

NOTE: Do NOT replace the almond flour or tapioca/arrowroot flours for another type of flour. Many paleo pancake recipes call for coconut flour or bananas. This is not a coconut flour pancakes recipes and it doesn't call for either. And you can't swap either of those flours for coconut flour and get the same result.

What kind of almond flour is good for fluffy paleo pancakes?

I use blanched almond flour (Kirkland Brand sold at Costco). It's light and finely ground. This type of almond flour will give you fluffy, light pancakes.

Almond flour vs. almond meal

Almond meal, however, is different from blanched almond flour. Unlike blanched almond flour, the skins of the almonds have not been removed and the almond meal is not ground as finely. You can use almond meal in this recipe, but your pancakes might be more dense with a more pronounced almond flavor. 

About tapioca flour

Tapioca flour or starch (they're basically the same thing) gives these pancakes some lightness.

You can use arrowroot powder/starch if you can't find or don't want to use tapioca flour in these pancakes. Both of these types of flour are similar to corn starch in baking (which you can also use, but it won't make the pancakes paleo).

Replacement for eggs in almond flour pancakes

If you want to make these easy paleo pancakes egg free, you can use either a chia egg or a flax egg.

This is done by blending either 1 Tablespoon of chia seeds or 1 Tablespoon flax meal with 3 Tablespoons of water. Let it sit for about 10 minutes until it turns into a thicker, gelatinous consistency.

Add the mixture to the recipe when it calls for the eggs.

How to make grain-free pancakes

This paleo pancakes recipe comes together like any other pancake recipe -- mixing wet ingredients into dry ingredients! 

Just make sure you whisk each set of ingredients really well before combining them.  

Cook the pancake batter on a lightly greased hot skillet or griddle over medium heat. You can make them small like silver dollar pancakes or 3-4 inches across, which is what I like.

You'll want to use a lower temperature because almond flour burns more easily than regular all-purpose flour. 

I love my electric nonstick griddle. The handles remove easily and it's nice and slim and fits in my cupboard. Easy to wash, too! I use it when I'm making extra big batches of pancakes. They're done so quickly!

Can you make these pancakes low carb?

Because these are pancakes with tapioca flour, isn't not naturally low carb or keto friendly.

You could further reduce the carb count by replacing the honey/maple syrup in the recipe with a low carb granulated sweetener (like Lakanto monkfruit) and drizzle it with low carb maple syrup (Lakanto maple syrup is good! I use this a lot.).

The carb count in the nutrition facts below are for the recipe made with honey or maple syrup. 

Are these pancakes Whole30 friendly?

Nope. No pancakes are. 

Even pancakes made with Whole30-friendly ingredients aren't allowed. Here's a detailed explanation why: The Pancake Rule. 

Just save these for after your round is over! 

How to Serve the Best Paleo Pancakes

Chocolate grain free pancakes are the way to go. Seriously. These are so tasty!

Here are some topping ideas to get you started...

• Fresh berries
• Honey or maple syrup
• Whipped coconut cream or regular whipped cream if you can tolerate dairy and don't mind if this isn't dairy free. Trader Joe's has a delicious sprayable dairy-free coconut whipped cream. It's not naturally sweetened, but is low sugar.
• Chocolate sauce (Here's a Paleo Friendly Chocolate Sauce if you need it!)
• Mini chocolate chips or dark chocolate shavings
• Chopped nuts

If you like this recipe, you might like these other paleo-friendly breakfast recipes!

More Paleo Breakfast Recipes on Perry's Plate

Paleo Chocolate Banana Protein Waffles

Apple-Pomegranate Breakfast Crumble

Coconut Chia Pudding with Mango

Sweet Potato Hash with Chorizo

Homemade Chicken Breakfast Sausage Bowls

Crispy Oven Sweet Potato Hash Browns

If you're wanting another breakfast recipe that is relatively low sugar try my Granola Low Sugar recipe!

If you make one of my recipes, I'd love to see! Post it on social media and tag me at @perrysplate or #perrysplate so I can send you some love!

Dark Chocolate Paleo Pancakes

Yield: 12-14 pancakes

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

These Dark Chocolate Paleo Pancakes taste like you're eating chocolate cake for breakfast! We love them topped with fresh berries, a drizzle of maple syrup, and some coconut whipped cream.

Print

Ingredients

Toggle ingredient group

• 1 cup blanched almond flour
• ⅔ cup tapioca flour
• ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• Generous pinch of salt
• 4 eggs
• ¼ cup unsweetened applesauce
• ¼ cup honey or pure maple syrup, plus more for serving
• 3 Tablespoons ghee or melted coconut oil, plus more for cooking
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ⅛ teaspoon liquid vanilla stevia (optional)
• Fresh berries and whipped cream (or coconut cream), for serving

Instructions

1. Whisk together the first five ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
2. In a separate, smaller bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients (except the berries and cream). Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture. Stir together gently, scraping down the sides, until no large dry pockets remain. It's OK if there are a few small lumps -- don't over mix the batter.
3. Heat a nonstick skillet to medium-high heat. Brush some ghee on the surface of the skillet, and using a ¼ measuring cup, drop dollops of batter onto the hot skillet. Turn the skillet down to medium heat. Cook the pancakes for 3-4 minutes on each side until they're toasted and the centers are cooked through. Transfer to a large plate or platter and keep warm.
4. Serve with berries, whipped cream, and a drizzle of honey or maple syrup.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

• 
  Anthony's Organic Tapioca Flour Starch, 2.5 lb, Gluten Free & Non GMO
• 
  Anthony's Almond Flour Blanched, 2 lb, Batch Tested Gluten Free, Non GMO, Vegan, Keto Friendly

Nutrition Information

Yield 5 Serving Size 3.5 pancakes
Amount Per Serving Calories 444Total Fat 26gSaturated Fat 9gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 15gCholesterol 169mgSodium 337mgCarbohydrates 45gFiber 5gSugar 21gProtein 11g

The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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The post Dark Chocolate Paleo Pancakes appeared first on Perry's Plate.

We eat a lot of pancakes around here. I'm always dying to play around with flavor combinations and make them more exciting, but my kids don't dig that. They like plain old pancakes with a little jam or fruit on top. Sometimes I beg them to let me put cinnamon in the batter, and sometimes they'll agree to it.

They're purists. What can I say?

Well, the other night I just did my own thing and told them I was going to "surprise" them with new pancakes. They looked at me suspiciously and went back to what they were doing.

Phew. Crisis averted. I just hoped they would turn out well because I don't make dinner twice.

Ya. We eat pancakes for dinner occasionally. I love brinner.

You know what else I love? When someone offers to send me something that I already use and love. Nielsen-Massey sent me this fun little kit of extracts and vanilla bean paste. I was already a huge fan of the vanilla bean paste, so I happily obliged.

I may have also done a happy dance.

That same week I noticed Meyer lemons were still at Costco, and I hadn't had my fix this season. Have you ever had Meyer lemons? They're a cross between a lemon and a mandarin so they're really tart, but have a warm, orange-y sweetness to them. They're heavenly.

I remembered some Blackberry Lemonade Ice Cream I made a while back with Meyer lemons that ended up tasting more like a dreamsicle than lemonade and suddenly I was craving something "dreamsicle" flavored.

I experimented a bit and ended up loving these. Since they were for dinner (and we rarely have pancakes leftover), I needed to take a photo, stat.

Thing is... my little blond shadow saw me setting up and made a beeline for the table.

I frantically started snapping photos knowing it was only a matter of seconds before a couple of little fingers would tear chunks out of those pancakes.

I told her not to touch it and know what? She had a surprising amount of restraint.

Yes, dear. Pancakes. I'm just as thrilled as you are.

And then it was over.

These were a huge hit with my picky little pancake eaters. I thought the clementine compote MADE these, but my kids didn't like it. They happily gobbled them up with a little honey on top.

*sigh*

If you've got pears in your fruit bowl, too, try these Gluten Free Buckwheat Pear Pancakes from Fearless Dining!

Paleo Dreamsicle Pancakes with Clementine-Vanilla Bean Compote

Yield: Makes about 20-22 pancakes

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 40 minutes

These paleo dreamsicle pancakes are laced with the sweet lemony-orange flavor of Meyer lemons and vanilla beans. It's like having a dreamsicle for breakfast!

Print

Ingredients

For the pancakes

Toggle ingredient group

• 2 cups blanched almond flour
• ½ cup coconut flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon Kosher salt
• 3 Meyer lemons, zested and juiced
• 4 eggs
• 1 cup full-fat coconut milk or plan full-fat yogurt
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
• Vanilla stevia, to taste (I used ⅔ a dropper.)
• coconut oil, for frying pancakes

For the compote

Toggle ingredient group

• 6 clementines, peeled and diced
• 1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste or vanilla stevia
• Raw honey, for serving

Instructions

1. Combine almond flour, coconut flour, baking soda, salt, and the zest from all three lemons in a large bowl. Whisk to combine.
2. In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, applesauce, juice from TWO of the lemons, and 1 Tablespoon of the vanilla bean paste.
3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry mixture and stir to combine.
4. Heat a skillet over medium-low heat and brush some coconut oil on the surface. I use a ¼ cup measuring cup to grab a dollops of pancake batter, place them on the pan, and spread them out a bit. The batter will be thicker than traditional pancake batter, so they need a little help spreading. For best results, cover the pan to allow pancakes to steam while they cook.
5. Cook until the edges look dry and the pancakes are golden brown. Flip and cook on the other side. Keep warm while you continue to cook in batches.
6. To make the compote, combine the clementine pieces, 1 teaspoon of vanilla bean paste, and the juice from the remaining lemon in a small bowl.
7. Serve the compote over the pancakes and drizzle with honey.

Notes

Nat's Notes:

1. If you don't have vanilla bean paste, you can use 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract in the batter and ¼ teaspoon in the compote.
2. If you can't find Meyer lemons, substitute one lemon and two clementines (juice and zest).

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