Instructions

1. Cook squash in a large pot of boiling salted water until very tender, 12-14 minutes. (If you finish cooking the squash before you’re done with the other pan, use a slotted spoon to transfer the squash to a medium bowl, but keep the water boiling.)
2. Simultaneously, teat 2 Tbsp. oil in a large high-sided skillet or a medium Dutch oven over medium-high. Add garlic until just fragrant. Then, add the sausage and break up into small pieces with a wooden spoon.
3. Cook, undisturbed, until deeply browned underneath, about 3 minutes. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until browned all over and just cooked through, 3-4 minutes more. Transfer to a plote with a slatted spoon.
4. Reduce heat to medium-low. Add the chopped dates to the same pan, and cook until deeply browned, 3-4 minutes.
5. Then, add in the squash. Use a slotted spoon to transfer from the pot, or from the reserved bowl. Season with salt.
6. Cook, scraping up browned bits and smashing squash with spoon to break up, until lightly browned and broken up into a chunky paste (pieces do not need to be even), about 5 minutes.
7. Meanwhile, start cooking the pasta in the still-boiling water until very al dente, about 3 minutes less than package directions (it will finish cooking in sauce). Drain, reserving 3 cups pasta cooking liquid.
8. Add 1 cup pasta cooking liquid to the squash mixture, and stir it all together to get a saucy consistency.
9. Add the pasta and another 1 cup pasta cooking liquid. Increase heat to medium-high; cook, adding more pasta cooking liquid as needed, until pasta is al dente and coated in sauce, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and taste pasta. Add more salt and / or pepper if needed.