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This baked butternut squash Mac and cheese is the ultimate fall comfort dish.
Our four cheese baked Mac and cheese was a hit!! So we’re bringing it back but with a fall twist! This butternut squash Mac and cheese may even be better than our original recipe because the butternut squash makes the cheese sauce super creamy and flavorful.
If you’re not a fan of butternut squash, I promise, you won’t even know there’s vegetables in this mac and cheese!! The butternut squash is baked, purred and blended with four delicious cheeses to make a delicious mac and cheese sauce. After being tossed in curly noodles, it is sprinkled with more cheese and baked. I mean, who doesn’t love a bowl of cheesy noodles!?
This baked butternut squash mac and cheese is perfect for serving as a main course or as a side dish for upcoming holiday festivities! We can’t wait for you to try and share with your friends and family!
Looking for more easy pasta recipes? Try these out!
Creamy Tuscan Pasta with Herby Breaded Chicken
Easy Pumpkin Vodka Sauce Rigatoni Pasta Dinner
Fresh Zucchini Baked Feta Pasta
Four Cheese Baked Mac & Cheese
Baked Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Recipe Snapshot
1. Peel and cube and boil butternut squash. Blend squash to puree.
2. Make butternut squash cheese sauce.
3. Stir in pasta into cheese sauce.
4. Sprinkle extra cheese onto and bake.
5. Make toasted cracker cracker crumbs.
6. Serve and top with cracker crumbs! Enjoy!
How to chop and peel butternut squash..
Butternut squash can be a bit tricky to cut and peel, but if you follow these steps, it will be quite a bit easier.
- Cut the stem end off first.
- Peel skin off with a vegetable peeler. The skin on butternut squash is a somewhat thick. This step may take the longest amount of time, but you’ll want to make sure all the skin in removed before boiling and pureeing.
- Slice butternut squash in half.
- Remove seeds. Scoop out seeds with a spoon and discard all the stringy bits.
- Slice squash into 1/2” slivers and then cut into cubes.
How to boil butternut squash…
Boiling butternut squash is quicker than roasting in the oven. It takes about 6-8 minutes to cook when boiling vs 25-30 minutes when roasting. For this recipe, you’ll want to boil to also make sure it gets super soft and cooks evenly.
- Start by bringing water to a rapid boil.
- Carefully pour cubed butternut squash into the water.
- Boil for 6-8 minutes until soft. Test doneness by poking with a fork. If it feels soft, remove from heat.
- Drain water using a strainer.
Once your butternut squash is cooked, you will puree in a high powered blender before adding to your Mac and cheese sauce.
How to cook al dente pasta…
Al dente = the perfect balance between crunch and crumbly!
Follow package instructions. It is important to pay attention to the package instructions, because each noodle type can have a different cook time.
Test the pasta as you go. Sample the pasta as you cook to see how well don’t the pasta is. You want to make sure the pasta is still firm in the center but not crunchy. If it is crunchy, cook for a bit longer and test again.
How does the pasta look and feel? Your pasta should be chewy, not crunchy or crumbly. When you bite into the pasta, there shouldn’t be a white center.
Do not skip the toasted cracker crumbs!
The toasted cracker crumbles on top of the mac and cheese turn this dish into a show-stopper!! Trust us, you do not skip this step! It’s too good!
A lot of southern mac and cheese recipes will have cracker crumbs baked on top. But we wanted to modernize this dish a bit by crushing buttery snack crackers, seasoning them and toasting them.
They add an extra punch of flavor and a crunch to each bite that really elevates the dish!
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Baked Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
Description
Cook your favorite noodles in a homemade four-cheese butternut squash sauce, topped with extra cheese and toasted cracker crumbs.
Ingredients
- 1 lb pasta
- 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup flour
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 2 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup gruyere cheese, shredded
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
Toasted Ritz Cracker Crumbs
- 20 Rtiz crackers
- 1/4 tsp paprika
- 1/4 tsp onion powder
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp butter
More toppings:
- Crispy baked prosciutto
- Fresh thyme
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350ºF.
- Peel and cube butternut squash. Cut the stem end off first. Peel skin off with a vegetable peeler. The skin on butternut squash is a somewhat thick. This step may take the longest amount of time, but you’ll want to make sure all the skin in removed before boiling. Slice butternut squash in half and remove seeds. Scoop out seeds with a spoon and discard all the stringy bits. Slice squash into 1/2” slivers and then cut into cubes.
- Boil butternut squash. Start by bringing water to a rapid boil. Carefully pour cubed butternut squash into the water. Boil for 6-8 minutes until soft. Test doneness by poking with a fork. If it feels soft, remove from heat. Drain water using a strainer and put squash in a bowl.
- Pour cooked butternut squash in a high powered blender and puree. If it doesn’t blend well to start, add a bit of milk. Set aside to put in the cheese sauce.
- Cook pasta according to package instructions. Once pasta is cooked, strain out water. Add 1 tbsp of butter to the pasta and mix to coat. The butter will make sure the pasta doesn’t stick together in one clump.
- While pasta is cooking, grate your cheese. Combine all the grated cheese into one bowl and toss together to mix. Set aside.
- Make your cheese sauce: Start by making the roux for the sauce. In a dutch oven or deep skillet, over medium-high heat, melt butter until just bubbling. Add in flour and whisk until it thickens.
- Next add in paprika, onion and garlic powder, dijon mustard. And whisk to combine. Pour in pumpkin puree, milk and yogurt to the skillet and whisk until it all comes together.
- Next add in half of the cheese mixture to the sauce, whisking until melted. Save the other half of the mixture for topping.
- Remove the cheese sauce from heat. Pour cooked pasta into sauce, stirring to coat all the pasta with the cheese sauce.
- Pour the cheesy pasta into a 9×13 baking dish. Sprinkle remaining cheese on top and bake in the oven for 35-45 minutes until the cheese onto is turning a golden brown color.
- Make toasted seasoned cracker crumbs: Add about 20 crackers to a plastic bag and crush them into crumbs by pounding with a wooden spoon or rolling pin. Add butter to a skillet over medium heat. Pour cracker crumbs and spices into skillet. Stir to coat crumbs. Toast for about 4-5 minutes until fragrant. When crumbs start to turn a dark golden color, remove from heat to cool
- Once cooked, remove from oven and cool for about 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with toasted crackers.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 1 hour
