There’s still butternut squash on the kitchen counter from this year's harvest. Let’s create another dish to add to my roasted butternut squash soup and butternut squash pasta recipes..sheet pan butternut squash and spicy Italian sausage. It’s also getting a little colder outside, so I’m using some fresh herbs from the garden before they’re done for the season. A very autumnal dish.
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The best part of this recipe: I found all the other ingredients in my pantry. No trip to the store needed. Yay!
The beauty of this recipe is that roasting the sausage releases and renders some of its fat, which then coats the squash in a scrumptious way. And the lemon/parsley mixture added at the end will brighten up the flavors and add some nice acidity.
Like most dishes of this kind, you can switch the butternut squash with your favorite vegetable (maybe yams or Brussels sprouts anyone?). Change the Italian sausage to a chorizo or andouille and add some pears or apples. Maybe even add some roasted walnuts.
What I’m trying to say is that here at maplewoodroad.com, we’re not a cooking show or recipe book...we want you to get inspired by basic recipes that really work and are easy to make. So after you come up with your own idea using the cooking method described here, you’ll get that “I did it myself” moment. Now your Inner Chef is talking 🙂
🔪 Preparation
Back to the recipe: Place a rimmed sheet pan in the oven and preheat to 425℉. This is important because you want the pan hot, so that when you toss the mixture onto the sheet pan, it immediately starts rendering the fat from the sausage.
Peel the butternut squash with a vegetable peeler (or sometimes it’s easier to use a sharp chef's knife). Cut in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and cube into ½” pieces. Place in a large bowl.
Grab a couple shallots, peel, and cut in two pieces. Grab a couple garlic gloves, peel, and slice. Chop some sage leaves. Add everything to the bowl with the squash.
Score the sausage on both sides, being careful not to cut all the way through, and add to the bowl.
Add extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper, and mix everything with a large spoon without breaking the sausages apart.
⏲️ Cooking
Carefully remove the hot sheet pan from the oven and add the contents of the bowl onto it, in one layer. After about 10 minutes of roasting, start tossing and turning everything, every few minutes, to make sure all the ingredients stay evenly coated.
In the meantime, roughly chop parsley, put into a small bowl. Add freshly squeezed lemon juice, pepper, and maybe a little bit of salt, and mix everything together.
When the sausages are cooked through and the squash is soft but not mushy and the kitchen smells delicious (it took about 30 minutes in my oven), carefully remove the hot sheet pan, cut the sausages in ½” slices, and divide everything onto two plates. Add some parsley/lemon mixture on top and serve.
Here’s a pretty neat video showing how to peel a butternut squash:
Love one-pan meals? Check out more of our one-pan recipes:
- One Pan Pasta, Deliciousness from the Pantry and Two Fresh Ingredients
- One Pan Chicken Pasta from the Essential Pantry
- One Pan Butternut Squash Risotto with Mushrooms
- Deliciously Creamy One-Pan Chicken and Beans
- Sheet Pan Dinner: Hanger Steak with Mushrooms and Carrots
- Super Easy Sheet Pan Shrimp Boil
- Cabbage and Sausage Casserole
Did you make this Sheet Pan Butternut Squash recipe? Let us know in the comments below!
📝 Recipe
Sheet Pan Butternut Squash with Spicy Italian Sausage
Ingredients
Sheet Pan
- 1 (2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed
- 2 shallots, peeled and cut in half
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and sliced
- 1 pound fresh spicy Italian sausages, scored
- ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon chopped sage
- 1 teaspoon salt and pepper, each
Sauce
- ½ cup Italian flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
- 1 Tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pepper and maybe a little flaky Maldon salt
Instructions
- Place a rimmed sheet pan in the oven and preheat to 425℉.
- Peel the butternut squash with a vegetable peeler (or sometimes it’s easier to use a sharp chef's knife). Cut in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and cube into ½” pieces. Place in a large bowl.
- Grab a couple shallots, peel, and cut in two pieces. Grab a couple garlic gloves, peel, and slice. Chop some sage leaves. Add everything to the bowl with the squash.
- Score the sausage on both sides, being careful not to cut all the way through, and add to the bowl.
- Add extra-virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper, and mix everything with a large spoon without breaking the sausages apart.
- Carefully remove the hot sheet pan and add the contents of the bowl onto it, in one layer. After about 10 minutes of roasting, start tossing everything a couple times.
- In the meantime, roughly chop parsley, put into a small bowl. Add freshly squeezed lemon juice, pepper, and maybe a little bit of salt, and mix everything together.
- When the sausages are cooked through and the squash is soft but not mushy and the kitchen smells delicious (it took about 30 minutes in my oven), carefully remove the hot sheet pan, cut the sausages in ½” slices, and divide everything onto two plates. Add some parsley/lemon mixture on top and serve.
Notes
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James S.
After working outside all day in the freezing cold, I made this for dinner tonight. It was so good, and I have leftovers for lunch tomorrow, thanks!
maplewoodroad
So glad this helped warm you up! Thanks & enjoy the leftovers too! 🙂