A silky, savory and satisfying combination of butternut squash, three cheeses and pasta. This is a wonderful meatless main dish or an impressive side. Serve with Four Ingredient Basic Biscuits for classic comfort food!
3cupsdiced butternut squashabout 1 pound of squash, you’ll need ⅔ cup of cooked, mashed squash
2cupsmilk
¼cupbutterunsalted
¼cupflour
½poundmezzi rigatonior any small shaped pasta such as elbow macaroni or penne
1 ¼cupcheddar cheeseshredded
¾cupsmoked gouda cheeseshredded
½cupparmesan cheeseshredded
½teaspoonnutmegground
¼teaspoontabasco sauce
1teaspoonsalt
⅛teaspoonground pepper
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350° and spray a 2-quart baking dish with Pam or grease with shortening.
Select Method for Cooking the Squash
Oven-Roast Butternut Squash:If you're using a whole squash, carefully cut it in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Leave the peel on and place the squash peel side down in a glass baking dish. Pour about ½ cup of water into the dish to help keep the squash moist while it cooks. Bake uncovered at 350° F for about 90 minutes. The cooking time will vary based on the size of the squash. Once the squash is soft and tender, remove it from the oven, cover with foil and cool slightly so it will be easier to handle. Scoop the cooked squash out of the peel. Microwave Butternut Squash:Slice the ends off of the butternut squash and pierce the peel about a dozen times with a fork. Cook in the microwave oven on high for 20 minutes. Check to see if the squash is tender. If not, continue cooking and checking it at 10-minute intervals. Once the squash is soft, cover it with foil and let it rest for 15 minutes. It may take slightly longer for the squash to be cool enough to handle. Slice the cooked squash in half, remove the seeds, and use a spoon to scoop out the cooked squash. Buy Frozen or Canned Butternut Squash:If frozen, cook the butternut squash according to the package directions or until it's fork-tender and will mash easily. Canned butternut squash is perhaps the easiest alternative. Simply open the can and the squash is pureed and ready to use. If you've purchased the butternut squash pre-sliced and cubed from the grocery store, place the squash cubes in a shallow pan, cover with parchment paper or waxed paper and add a tablespoon of water. Depending on your microwave, it should take about 15 minutes on high power. Check the squash at 15 minutes, it should be very tender and mash easily with a fork. Buy Butternut Squash Prepped and Cubed:If you've purchased the butternut squash pre-sliced and cubed from the grocery store, place the squash cubes in a shallow pan, cover it with parchment paper or waxed paper, and add a tablespoon of water. Depending on your microwave, it should take about 15 minutes on high power. Check the squash at 15 minutes, it should be very tender and mash easily with a fork.Mash the cooked squash - either oven roasted or microwaved - with a fork or potato masher to create ⅔ cup of cooked squash. Set it aside until the cheese sauce is ready.
Cook Pasta
Cook pasta on the stovetop using the minimum cooking time listed on the packaging. For mezzi rigatoni (small rigatoni) it’s about 9 minutes. While the pasta is cooking, shred all three of the cheeses. Set aside about ¼ cup of the Cheddar and ¼ cup of the Gouda, that will be used for the topping.
Drain pasta in a colander and leave the pasta there while you make the sauce.
Prepare Cheese Sauce
Use the same pan used to cook the pasta, melt the butter and whisk in flour. Stir over medium heat until the butter is foamy, and whisk for about 20 seconds. Add two cups of milk and continue stirring until the milk becomes like a thick cream sauce.
Remove from heat and stir in the cheddar, smoked gouda and parmesan cheeses along with the cooked butternut squash. Add nutmeg, tabasco, salt and pepper and stir. Add macaroni and stir again.
Bake
Place ingredients into prepared baking dish.
Cover the dish with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, remove foil and sprinkle the reserved cheddar and gouda on top of the hot macaroni. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until hot and bubbly around the edges.
As an option, garnish with a dash of paprika and a little parsley.
Notes
The cooking time for this recipe takes into account the time needed to cook pre-cubed butternut squash in the microwave. Oven roasting the squash will add at least 90 minutes to the recipe's time. Follow up Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese with a tasty, family-favorite dessert such as Old Fashioned Strawberry Rhubarb Pie or my Best Blueberry Cake Recipe