Max La Manna is kitchen goals. The low-waste chef and author focuses sustainable swaps and plant-based recipes that strive to utilize all parts of each ingredient, resulting in delicious dishes that reduce any home cook’s footprint in the process. The method saves you money, too.

“I’m all about utilizing the ingredients and food you have so that nothing goes to waste,” says La Manna. “With the cost of living and food prices surging, it’s more important than ever to use what you have first so that nothing ends up in the bin.”

Now, with the coming release of You Can Cook This! (Spring 2023), La Manna is further demystifying his plant-based approach, with more than 100 simple recipes that are big on taste and low on waste. In addition to recipes, the book features ideas for making use of entire fruits and veggies, reimagining leftovers, and tips for food storage.

To celebrate the forthcoming title—and the season!—we’re cooking up La Manna’s Seed-to-Skin Squash Pasta. This recipe is a perfect example of avoiding waste by simply eating your natural ingredients in their entirety.

How to Make Seed-to-Skin Squash Pasta

Ingredients:

5-7 sage leaves (or 1 Tbsp dried sage)
1 butternut squash, peeled, deseeded, and chopped (save the skin and seeds!)
Extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled (save the skins for your vegetable stock or compost them)
1 onion, quartered
1 tsp paprika peeled (save the skins for your 200ml preferred milk
500g preferred pasta (pappardelle picks up more of the sauce)
Salt and pepper
One handful of rocket or shredded kale

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

2. In a bowl, mix the sage, squash seeds, and squash skins with a tablespoon of olive oil and some salt and pepper.

3. Spread on a baking tray and roast in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until lightly crisped. Separate ingredients for later use.

4. Place butternut squash, garlic, and onion on the same baking tray with a light drizzle of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt, pepper, and paprika.

5. Roast in the oven for 40-45 minutes, until the edges begin to brown and crisp and the flesh is soft. Once ready, leave to cool on the baking tray.

6. Add Brussels sprouts (cut side down) and shallots to one side of a large baking tray and the cubed butternut squash to the other side.

7. Blend roasted garlic and onion and half of the milk in a food processor until smooth and creamy. Add the roasted butternut squash, a few leaves of roasted sage, and a pinch of salt and pepper, and pulse until thick and a bit chunky.

8. Cook the pasta until tender (or to your liking) and transfer to a serving bowl.

9. Coat evenly with heaping spoonfuls of sauce and serve with roasted skins, toasted seeds, and a topping of leafy greens.