Autumn is upon us, and I am seeing shades of orange and red everywhere I go-many in the form of pumpkins and winter squash. We finally harvested the majority of our squash and pumpkins and now its time to cook up those quintessential fall dishes. I have made pumpkin bread, pumpkin pancakes, squash and apples, pumpkin puree, and the list goes on. But one of my more recent dishes was a new experiment-a twist on a comforting classic. This butternut squash mac and cheese is perfect for those cool fall nights and is a bit healthier without losing any of the creamy richness, the reason we all love mac and cheese.
naturallyella.com
Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Ingredients:
2 cups of butternut squash puree (any winter squash or pumpkin would taste delicious)
1 ½ Tablespoon butter
1 ½ Tablespoon flour
3/4 cup whole milk
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
½ teaspoon nutmeg
½ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1 cup of cheddar cheese
1 pound of whole wheat penne pasta
Directions:
- Peel and chop butternut squash. Toss with some olive oil, salt and pepper and roast at 400°F for 30 minutes.
- While squash is roasting, bring a pot of water to a boil, add pasta and cook til tender.
- Once squash is cooked through and cooled slightly, place in a blender or food processer and pulse until it’s smooth.
- In a medium saucepan, heat butter over medium-low heat until melted. Whisk in flour and cook for a minute. Continue whisking while slowly adding the milk. Next add in salt, pepper, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Allow mixture to thicken slightly. Add the squash puree and whisk until it is completely incorporated. Lastly add the cheese and whisk until melted.
- Combine squash mixture to pasta and serve
*If you wanted to make this even healthier, you could try adding some sautéed spinach or kale, or any other delicious fall veggies.
This recipe is adapted from Naturally Ella Blog