Orecchiette with Caramelized Onions and Winter Squash Compote

This fall pasta combines orecchiette, tiny cup-shaped pasta, with a richly flavored caramelized vegetable compote.



Technically, Orecchiette with Caramelized Onions and Winter Squash Compote doesn’t qualify as a Copywriters’ Kitchen’s “quick recipe.” Not that you have to slave over its preparation: The only real labor you face is peeling and cubing the winter squash and chopping an onion.

But you do need to allow around 40-50 minutes to bake the onions and Winter Squash to a state of caramelized golden goodness.



If you’re not prone to distraction, you can make this pasta on a weeknight. Chop the veggies, pop them into the oven and go about your business for the next 20 minutes. Just remember to come back to the kitchen, scoop and turn the vegetables, return them to the oven and watch carefully toward the end of their roasting time.

Unfortunately, all that remembering and watching is beyond my powers of concentration on busy weeknights. At the pre-dinner witching hour, my blood sugar and temper are at all-time lows. I’m more apt to end up with scorched pans and screaming smoke alarms than luscious compote.

That’s why I bake the compote ahead of time–usually on the weekend–and store it tightly covered in the fridge. When ready to use, all I have to do is boil the pasta and toss it with the compote and Parmesan cheese.

By the way, without the pasta, this compote makes a heavenly side dish. I’m thinking about tripling proportions and serving it at Thanksgiving.

Recipe for Orecchiette with Caramelized Onions and Winter Squash Compote

1 small butternut, pumpkin or other winter squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1/2” cubes—about 3 cups cubed squash
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4-5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons Demerara or brown sugar
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon thyme or oregano
1/2-3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup reserved pasta water
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1. To make compote, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a baking pan, toss the cubed squash and onion with 2 tablespoons olive oil, sugar, garlic and salt and pepper to taste. Pat mixture into a single layer keeping mixture 1” away from sides of pan—veggies near pan’s side tend to burn.
3. Cover pan with foil and place in oven. Bake squash and pumpkin mixture for 20 minutes.
4. Slide pan from oven and remove foil. Scoop and turn squash and onion mixture—it will be very soupy looking. Again, pat mixture into a single layer, keeping vegetables at least 1” away from sides of pan. Return pan to the oven without the foil.
5. Continue to roast the vegetables until the pan juices caramelize and the vegetables turn a dark orange color.
6. Remove pan from oven. If you plan to store the compote for later use, cover pan tightly and refrigerate. Note: Be sure to store the squash in it’s own baking pan. When you’re ready to prepare the pasta, you will want to deglaze the pan to capture all its baked-on caramelized juices.
7. If serving pasta immediately, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil during last 20 minutes of compote roasting time.
8. Boil pasta, stirring well at the beginning so orecchiette do not stick together. Before draining pasta, remove and reserve a cup of pasta water.
9. Drain orecchiette and return pasta to pot. Add 2-3 tablespoons olive oil and toss pasta to coat with oil.
10. Scrape the vegetable compote over orecchiette.
11. Working quickly so pasta doesn’t cool, pour ½ cup hot pasta water into the compote pan to deglaze. With a wooden spoon, stir and scrape to capture the baked-on juices. Pour water onto orecchiette and stir. The mixture will be slightly soupy.
12. Add 1/2-3/4 cup Parmesan cheese, thyme or oregano and salt and pepper to taste, tossing to mix all ingredients. Serve immediately.

Serves 8.