Slow cooker butternut squash and sage pasta recipe
 Sage and squash combine with spaghetti in this easy vegetarian pasta dish. Thin or small pasta shapes work really well in a slow cooker, when cooked in plenty of stock on the highest setting. The crispy sage topping isn’t strictly necessary but finishes the dish off very nicely. This recipe is part of a budget slow cooker vegetarian meal plan for four. In March 2023, it was costed at an average of £3.01 when checking prices at four UK supermarkets. It is designed to be made in conjunction with a low-cost store cupboard. 1 butternut squash ‘trunk’, trimmed, peeled and cut into 1–2cm/½–¾in chunks3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced2 vegetable stock cubes, crumbled1 heaped tbsp finely chopped fresh sage, plus 2 extra sprigs for the topping350g/12oz dried spaghetti, snapped into thirds80g/2¾oz hard vegetarian cheese, finely grated, plus extra to serve if preferredfreshly ground black pepper 1 butternut squash ‘trunk’, trimmed, peeled and cut into 1–2cm/½–¾in chunks 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced 2 vegetable stock cubes, crumbled 1 heaped tbsp finely chopped fresh sage, plus 2 extra sprigs for the topping 350g/12oz dried spaghetti, snapped into thirds 80g/2¾oz hard vegetarian cheese, finely grated, plus extra to serve if preferred freshly ground black pepper Method Place the squash, garlic, stock cubes and chopped sage in the slow cooker pot and pour in 1.1 litres/2 pints water. Season with plenty of pepper. Cover with the lid and cook on high for 2 hours until the squash is soft.Scoop about a third of the squash pieces out with a slotted spoon and mash until smooth with a potato masher. Stir the mashed squash back into the rest of the squash chunks and stock. Stir in the spaghetti. Cover with the lid and cook on high for 20–30 minutes until the spaghetti is soft. Turn off the slow cooker and stir in the cheese. Cover with the lid and leave for 5 minutes. Pick the sage leaves from the 2 extra sprigs. Spread the leaves on a microwave-proof plate and microwave for 1½ minutes on high, followed by 20 second blasts until the leaves have darkened and are shrivelled – they will crisp immediately on cooling. Or, fry the leaves in a frying pan for a similar time until crisp. Spoon the spaghetti mixture onto plates and top with the crispy sage leaves, crumbling up any large ones. Serve with extra cheese over the top, if preferred. Place the squash, garlic, stock cubes and chopped sage in the slow cooker pot and pour in 1.1 litres/2 pints water. Season with plenty of pepper. Cover with the lid and cook on high for 2 hours until the squash is soft. Place the squash, garlic, stock cubes and chopped sage in the slow cooker pot and pour in 1.1 litres/2 pints water. Season with plenty of pepper. Cover with the lid and cook on high for 2 hours until the squash is soft. Scoop about a third of the squash pieces out with a slotted spoon and mash until smooth with a potato masher. Stir the mashed squash back into the rest of the squash chunks and stock. Stir in the spaghetti. Cover with the lid and cook on high for 20–30 minutes until the spaghetti is soft. Turn off the slow cooker and stir in the cheese. Cover with the lid and leave for 5 minutes. Scoop about a third of the squash pieces out with a slotted spoon and mash until smooth with a potato masher. Stir the mashed squash back into the rest of the squash chunks and stock. Stir in the spaghetti. Cover with the lid and cook on high for 20–30 minutes until the spaghetti is soft. Turn off the slow cooker and stir in the cheese. Cover with the lid and leave for 5 minutes. Pick the sage leaves from the 2 extra sprigs. Spread the leaves on a microwave-proof plate and microwave for 1½ minutes on high, followed by 20 second blasts until the leaves have darkened and are shrivelled – they will crisp immediately on cooling. Or, fry the leaves in a frying pan for a similar time until crisp. Pick the sage leaves from the 2 extra sprigs. Spread the leaves on a microwave-proof plate and microwave for 1½ minutes on high, followed by 20 second blasts until the leaves have darkened and are shrivelled – they will crisp immediately on cooling. Or, fry the leaves in a frying pan for a similar time until crisp. Spoon the spaghetti mixture onto plates and top with the crispy sage leaves, crumbling up any large ones. Serve with extra cheese over the top, if preferred. Spoon the spaghetti mixture onto plates and top with the crispy sage leaves, crumbling up any large ones. Serve with extra cheese over the top, if preferred.