4 Reviews
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greeleygirl on 11.18.2011
I’m all about squash and pumpkin right now, which my kids aren’t wild about, and this was an excellent way to get some in without a bunch of fuss! Butternut is so rich, great compliment to mac and cheese. I didn’t use the cayenne to make it a bit more family friendly, and I didn’t have any ricotta so I substituted with cottage cheese which I blended in my mini food processor to eliminate chunks. We personally like a little bit more cheese, but this has excellent flavor. Thanks for the great recipe, Cozy Kitchen!
insanesquash on 1.2.2011
Really really excellent. I don’t think I’d make “normal” mac & cheese ever again! I did make some modifications, but I’m sure it would have been delicious as written. I bought the pre-cut butternut squash, which I cut into small cubes and roasted, then I semi-mashed it in the sauce. I also sauteed a shallot in some butter and then added 2 TBSP of flour to make a roux before adding the milk and chicken stock (force of habit I guess). I added some diced cooked turkey kielbasa that I had on hand, which I thought worked out really well, and I used crushed gingersnaps mixed with a little melted butter as a topping instead of breadcrumbs. Whew, that sounds like a lot more doctoring than it seemed, but really the basic sauce and flavors were the same. I highly recommend this!
ljb213 on 7.21.2010
This is an excellent way to get vegetables into picky eaters. My youngest wouldn’t touch squash until I tried this receipe. I roasted the butternut whole (stab it a few times before you put it in the oven). 350 degrees for about an hour depending on the size. Cool, slice in half & seed, peel. I think this gives the butternut a deeper flavor by roasting with the seeds in. I pureed in the food processor with a little butter and chicken stock. The leftover puree freezes well. I started the roux with finely diced onions and garlic and added a bit of nutmeg at the end instead of cayenne. Used sharp cheddar cheese and veggie cream cheese – it was all I had in the house. Got a big thumbs up from the whole family.
ComfortablyDomestic on 7.17.2010
This was outstanding. I found the texture after baking to be perfect, and not at all runny. Very flavorful. Not at all bland like most butternut squash mac & cheese recipes. I admit I was nervous because the sauce was quite thin out of the saucepan, but it all works out in the end.
I substituted Asiago for the Guyere , and softened cream cheese for the ricotta, because that is what I had. My main dinner guests were kids, so I also halved the cayenne,. Next time, I would probably puree the roasted squash after scooping it out.
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westmonster on 10.26.2011
We had this for dinner yesterday, but since I had gotten home from work late we simply didn’t have the patience to wait for the mac and cheese to be baked in the oven, so I omitted that last step. I’m sure it would have made all the difference. Even though the overall taste was very good and – like someone else already said – not bland at all, the sauce was very watery. The pasta would have soaked that up in the oven, I’m sure.
rkclerc on 7.29.2010
YUM!! Even my very picky kids ate this and had no idea squash was in there, not even the 11yr old.
I microwaved the butternut squash to soften, but didn’t puree it, because I am quite lazy, so it was only mushed. SOOO GOOD!!!
Sara Davis on 11.20.2009
Sorry, but not good. There is no roux so the milk, butternut squash mixture is watery and not creamy. The butternut squash did not encorporate well. Might be good if you make a roux and add the squash to that.
hailskitchen on 11.17.2009
This looks so yummy! Dreaming about mac and cheese at 7 a.m. seems a bit odd, but this recipe looks great! Thanks for sharing — I can’t wait to try it.