Baked butternut squash mac and cheese is creamy, delicious and colorful, its perfect for fall or winter season and great for holidays including Thanksgiving dinner or Christmas, as it makes a nice tasty side dish or even main course vegetarian pasta dish which is also easy and simple to prepare from scratch at home. This homemade butternut squash macaroni and cheese recipe uses no eggs, no roux so no extra flour is used in the preparation.
If you are trying to squeeze veggies like butternut squash for young kids or toddlers, butternut squash mac and cheese is a great dish since you can easily hide the squash in the sauce and they won’t even notice!
This instant pot spinach pesto pasta is another great way to hide green leafy veggies for little kids who are picky eaters won’t touch vegetables unless its sneaked in food. I have used a handful of cashews in both these pasta dishes, but if you or kids have any nut allergy, then make sure to skip the cashews.
Tips To Make The Best Butternut Squash Mac And Cheese
We use roasted butternut squash to make the butternut squash mac and cheese which adds so much of flavor to the mac and cheese.
I always like to roast the whole butternut squash first in the oven prior to using it in any recipes, because that way you can easily peel and cut the butternut squash (I find it too difficult to cut the raw butternut squash using knife) and also the roasted butternut squash adds more flavor.
You can see here my detailed post on how to roast butternut squash for easy peeling and cutting.
I used the same method here to roast the whole butternut squash first and then used half of the roasted squash to use in this roasted baked butternut squash mac and cheese recipe.
How To Make Baked Butternut Squash Mac And Cheese?
To make the butternut squash mac and cheese, we need the following ingredients.
- roasted butternut squash – using oven roasted squash adds a great flavor, but if you prefer to use raw ones which is not roasted that also works.
- raw cashews – this is optional, but I love to add the cashews as it makes this squash mac and cheese even more creamy, rich and delicious.
- macaroni pasta shells – as I wanted to create a classic mac and cheese, I used the traditional macaroni pasta shells, but you may use other kind of appropriate pasta shells that you use for making mac and cheese.
- water – just use enough as mentioned in the recipe!
- milk – whole milk adds more flavor but even low fat is fine
- shredded cheese – I prefer using cheddar or Mexican blend but you may use your favorite kind of cheese for mac and cheese, also you may use more amount as you prefer than the amount mentioned in the recipe
- salt
- garlic powder
- onion powder
- turmeric powder
- olive oil
- butter
Steps To Follow (The Process)
- Cook the macaroni pasta al dente according to package instructions (by boiling in enough water and cooking according to the time in the package). Make sure not to overcook the pasta, we do not want it soft either since we are going to bake the pasta further.
- Once the pasta is cooked just enough, immediately drain the water, mix the olive oil with the cooked pasta and keep it aside.
- Blend the cashews, roasted butternut squash cubes and 2 cups of water in a blender until very smooth.
- Heat butter in a large pan and as the butter melts, add the cooked pasta and gently mix.
- Now add the prepared butternut squash mixture and stir in to coat the pasta.
- Add the garlic powder, onion powder and enough salt and mix well. Cook in low heat for about 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture is slightly roasted in the butter.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit and grease a large sized baking pan with little butter or oil.
- Layer the pasta and butternut squash mixture in the baking pan.
- Now add two cups of shredded cheese (I recommend cheddar or Mexican blend) with the pasta mixture and stir in.
- Also add the remaining one cup of water and one cup of milk to the baking pan, gently mix in with the pasta. The pasta need to be barely covered in liquid, so you may add a little more water or milk if needed.
- Top with the remaining one cup of shredded cheese in a single layer. If needed, you may add more cheese.
- Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and starts to brown. If needed, increase the temperature to 375 degree Fahrenheit and bake for another 5 more minutes so the top will be golden brown in color. Serve the delicious baked butternut squash mac and cheese hot for best results!
So here is the recipe in detail for baked butternut squash mac and cheese using roasted butternut squash.
Butternut Squash Mac And Cheese
Ingredients
- 2 cups roasted butternut squash peeled and sliced in cubes
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 4 cups macaroni pasta shells
- 3 cups water plus more to cook the pasta
- 1 cup milk
- 3 cups shredded cheese I used Mexican blend, may use more cheese
- salt as needed
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder optional
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
Instructions
- Cook the macaroni pasta al dente according to package instructions (by boiling in enough water and cooking according to the time in the package). Make sure not to overcook the pasta, we do not want it soft either since we are going to bake the pasta further.
- Once the pasta is cooked just enough, immediately drain the water, mix the olive oil with the cooked pasta and keep it aside.
- Blend the cashews, roasted butternut squash cubes and 2 cups of water in a blender until very smooth.
- Heat butter in a large pan and as the butter melts, add the cooked pasta and gently mix.
- Now add the prepared butternut squash mixture and stir in to coat the pasta.
- Add the garlic powder, onion powder, turmeric powder and enough salt and mix well. Cook in low heat for about 1 to 2 minutes until the mixture is slightly roasted in the butter.
To make the baked butternut squash mac and cheese
- Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit and grease a large sized baking pan with little butter or oil.
- Layer the pasta and butternut squash mixture in the baking pan.
- Now add two cups of shredded cheese (I recommend cheddar or Mexican blend) with the pasta mixture and stir in evenly.
- Also add the remaining one cup of water and one cup of milk to the pan, gently stir in to mix with the pasta mixture. The pasta need to be barely covered in liquid, so you may add a little more water or milk if needed.
- Top with the remaining one cup of shredded cheese in a single layer. If needed, you may add more cheese.
- Bake for about 25 to 30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbling and starts to brown. If needed, increase the temperature to 375 degree Fahrenheit and bake for another 5 more minutes so the top will be golden brown in color. Serve the delicious baked butternut squash mac and cheese hot for best results!
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