Hospitality Highlight: Jessica Horning

One of my family’s favorite wintertime cozy dinners is Butternut Squash Sausage Pasta. This creamy dish features the Alfredo recipe from generations back in my Sicilian family and pairs well with salad, green beans, broccoli or any other fresh vegetable. Chef’s kiss! Or, to say it like my grandmother would, “Let’s mangia!”

Ingredients

For the pasta

1 whole butternut squash
1 pound ground Italian sausage (mild or hot depending on preference)
1 pound pasta of any shape (recommended: rotini, farfalle, penne)
Olive oil

For the sauce

1 cup heavy cream
2 egg yolks, beaten
1/4 cup salted butter
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
2/3 cup shredded
parmesan cheese, plus more for topping
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 cups spinach, chopped (fresh or frozen)

Directions

1. Peel the squash and deseed the center. Cut in half-inch to 1-inch cubes and arrange on a baking sheet in one layer. Toss with olive oil, plus salt and pepper to taste. Roast at 400° for 20 minutes or until tender.
2. While squash is roasting, prepare the other elements. Cook the pasta per package instructions and drain. You should be able to time the pasta to be finished at the same time the squash comes out of the oven.
3. Brown sausage in a large pan with a little olive oil, breaking it up until the meat is fully cooked and the pieces are not in big chunks. Set aside and keep warm.
4. Make the sauce: Mix cream and egg yolks together in a separate bowl. Melt butter in the pan on medium-high heat until bubbling. Add garlic and cook until slightly golden. Add cream mixture. Let that come to a boil, stirring to prevent it from burning. Add in the parmesan and stir until the consistency becomes a bit thicker. Add in pepper and spinach and stir.
5. Add sausage and pasta to the sauce and combine fully to coat the noodles. Gently fold in the roasted squash. Top with 1/3 cup parmesan and serve.

Timing tip

You can chop the spinach and cube the squash in advance. That way, once it’s time to cook dinner, this dish will only take about as long as the squash takes to roast!

Jessica Horning

Meet our Hospitality Highlight editor, Jessica Horning. Contact her if you have a recipe to share at mrs.jessicahorning@gmail.com

Hospitality highlight

From the start of our marriage, Jason and I decided to practice hospitality as much as we could within our schedule. It started with a once-a-week goal in the honeymoon stage and has grown to more from there. We have been so encouraged by the meaningful and encouraging fellowship that has come from it! It is a blessing to know your home is a welcoming place for people to open up and feel cared for.

One thing I have learned as I continually grow in the discipline of hospitality was imparted by my mother and grandmother. I find that it is helpful to have all elements of the food prepared before the guests arrive so that you can warmly welcome them upon their entry. Coming into a home with a busy chef in the kitchen doesn’t always translate to “Welcome!” Being able to invest time face to face in conversation is a valuable practice that takes forethought and time management.

I also continually have to rely on the Spirit’s help to first be warm and hospitable to my family before guests arrive. Many a time have I failed in this and had to plaster a smile on as the door opened, when minutes prior my blood was boiling. I have humbly had to learn that if there is need for reconciliation before guests arrive, it is of utmost importance to attend to that as promptly as I can. No matter the time crunch, remaining patient and warm to our nearest neighbors (our family) is vitally important for the health of hospitality within our family culture. Inviting little ones into the setup, and kindly working as a team to prepare for hosting, helps get the work done with relationships intact.

I look forward to stewarding this section of Living Faith magazine. For each issue I will be asking members of Faith Bible Church to share highlights and tools they’ve learned as they practice hospitality. Let’s make our hospitality fragrant and frequent: Fragrant in that our guests see and hear and taste of the Lord’s goodness in fellowship. Frequent, in that we would be seeking every opportunity to build up and serve each other.

If you have a great recipe to share, and would be willing to also impart some lessons you’ve learned about hospitality along the way, please contact me at the email address above!

Jessica Horning

Former Living Faith hospitality editor Jessica Horning is a wife and mother of two boys. She loves baking—specifically sourdough.

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