How to Make the Butternut Squash Noodles:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
2. Cut the bulb of the butternut squash off. You can cube this (removing the seeds and skin) and put it in the freezer to save for soup.
3. Take the neck of the butternut squash and cut it in half (about 3 inches each). Remove the skin with a peeler or a sharp knife.
4. One at a time, place the butternut squash into a spiralizer using the wide noodle attachment.
5. Add the noodles onto a rimmed sheet pan lined with aluminum foil. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil on the noodles and place in the oven.
6. Bake at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes (but no longer – we don’t want mushy noodles).

Sausage Mixture:

1. In a sauce pan with a tall rim add oil and heat on medium high.
2. Remove sausage casings, to do this I slice through the top of the casings lengthwise and then turn the sausage inside out into the pan. Sauté and crumble the sausage for about 3 minutes.
3. Add the onion and green apple and continue to cook for 4 minutes, until the onions and apple start to soften.
4. Add the kale. The kale will look like a lot but it will wilt down! Stir into the sausage mixture for 2 minutes.
5. Add the garlic, salt, pepper and Italian seasoning and cook for another minute.
6. This step is important. Measure the chicken stock into a measuring cup and then add the apple cider vinegar into the chicken stock and stir. Apple cider vinegar can really react with heat and can steam quite a bit – mixing it in with the chicken stock first will eliminate this. Add the mixture to the pan and stir. Allow to saute for an additional 5 minutes on medium heat.
7. Add the butternut squash noodles to the pan and toss. If the butternut squash noodles are a little more firm than you like, add a lid to the pan and steam the noodles for about 5 minutes on medium heat.
8. Plate up and serve with shaved parmesan cheese and red pepper flakes.