This vegan butternut squash mac and cheese is a creamy pasta bake with 'hidden' squash, topped with crispy breadcrumbs. The ultimate comfort food!
There's something about butternut squash.... more than any other vegetable I can think of, it becomes so incredibly velvety and creamy when cooked, making just about the best creamy vegan soups and sauces.
And of course when roasted it is beautifully sweet, mashed it makes a superb shepherds' pie topping, and thickly sliced, marinated and par-cooked beforehand, is totally more-ish on the BBQ.
This is a proper, grown-ups mac and cheese - plenty of creamy sauce, a crispy topping and a sprinkle of vegan parmesan to finish. I prefer to use a short rigatoni, (giant macaroni, if you like), but the small stuff works brilliantly too.
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📝 What you need
Ingredients
Macaroni or similar pasta shape - in fact I tend to use rigatoni or similar as I prefer a chunkier pasta, but it is entirely up to you.
Butternut squash For a super-duper time saving hack, I often use frozen butternut squash chunks as pictured above. But of course it is absolutely fine to use fresh butternut squash instead.
Dairy-free milk I always use an unsweetened oat milk to make savoury sauces as I find it has the mildest flavour and makes a creamy sauce. Whichever plant milk you choose, do make sure that it is unsweetened.
Vegan cheese OR nutritional yeast flakes I give an either/or option here as vegans tend to have quite a strong opinion for or against which is best to use in a cheesy sauce! I usually choose to use vegan cheese but nutritional yeast goes give a deep, savoury flavour with a hit of vitamin B12 too so that's all good if you prefer it.
Lemon sounds like a strange addition to a cheesy sauce but actually works so well - it tastes even more cheesy rather than lemony - give it a try!
❄️ Freezing
I've also found that this vegan butternut squash mac and cheese freezes really well - I portion it up into individual foil trays and it is really good to keep as a standby for those days when you don't have the time or energy to cook.
Just defrost before cooking, or transfer to a microwaveable dish, cover and cook for 5-6 minutes, then finish under the grill to get that lovely crispy crust.
👩🏽🍳 Variations
There are so many variations you can make to this basic recipe. How about:
- Add some chopped jalapeños from a jar to add a spicy kick?
- Stir some chopped sun-dried tomatoes through the sauce before baking?
- Boil some Tenderstem broccoli along with the pasta (add it half way through cooking time), then stir through the pasta and sauce, so you can eat your greens in the same dish?
- Stir 2 tablespoon vegan pesto through the sauce for a herby twist? (Shop-bought or make your own from my pesto recipe).
🔪 What else can I make with Butternut Squash?
Butternut Squash is such a versatile vegetable, perfect as a side dish or the star of the show. How about trying:
- Slow Cooker Butternut Dahl for a winter-warmer weeknight meal? Frozen butternut pieces would work really well in this one too.
- Stuffed Butternut Squash Roast as a centrepiece for a roast dinner, with all the trimmings?
- Chickpea and Butternut Squash Curry for a flavour-packed spicy supper?
What is your favourite butternut squash dish? Let me know in the comments below!
🍽 If you liked that...
.... you might also enjoy these vegan recipes from The Veg Space:
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
For the Sauce:
- 300 g frozen butternut squash chunks (or fresh butternut squash)
- 2 tablespoon rapeseed or olive oil
- 1 onion
- 1 teaspoon garlic purée / ready-chopped garlic
- 2 tablespoon plain flour
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- 500 ml dairy-free milk unsweetened - I like to use oat milk
- 50 g vegan cheese or 2 tablespoon nutritional yeast flakes
- 3 teaspoon mustard (check it is vegan)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ lemon
For the pasta bake:
- 300 g macaroni (or similar pasta shape)
- 3 tablespoon breadcrumbs
- 2 tablespoon vegan parmesan (optional)
Instructions
- Bring a large saucepan of water to the boil and add the butternut squash chunks. Cook for 6-8 minutes until soft, then remove with a slotted spoon, (saving the water to boil the pasta in later).
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large frying pan. Finely chop the onion and add to the pan, followed by the garlic. Cook gently for 3-4 minutes until soft, then stir through the flour and paprika and cook for a further minute.
- Stir the milk into the frying pan, adding a little at a time and stirring as you go. Add the butternut squash chunks and cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Add the pasta to the saucepan of water and boil for 8-10 minutes until soft.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas Mark 4.
- Add the vegan cheese or nutritional yeast, mustard, salt and juice of half the lemon to the frying pan, then tip everything into a blender (or use a hand-blender in the pan), and blitz to a very smooth sauce.
- When the pasta is cooked, drain it and return to the saucepan, then tip in the sauce and stir through to fully coat the pasta.
- Tip the pasta into a large ovenproof dish, scatter with the breadcrumbs and vegan cheese then bake for 10-12 minutes until crispy and golden brown.
ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION
Nutrition
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Mary Doris says
Just made it. I don't know what I did wrong, but it is so bland. My kids were adding chilli flakes, hot sauce, tomato puree, loads of salt and pepper, just to get some flavour going. We ate it, as I hate seeing waste, but it wasn't to my taste.
Mary Doris says
I've just made this. I used English mustard powder. Was the right thing to use? Too late now! I've also made this gluten free by subbing the flour, breadcrumbs and pasta for gluten free products.
Corina Blum says
This sounds delicious and using the frozen butternut squash must save loads of time. I'll have to try it too! Thanks so much for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice!
Kat (The Baking Explorer) says
Frozen squash is such a time saver, I love it! And your pasta dish sounds incredible!
Chichi says
This is quite an interesting mix of ingredients. I love the creativity in this dish. Butternut squash is something I am getting familiar with. Definitely giving this recipe a go.
Alida | Simply Delicious says
Love the fact that this can be served to vegans and meat eaters alike. Great recipe.
georgie says
this looks so yummy and comforting! And I love the idea of using butternut squash on the recipe too! freaking LOVE squash!
Julia says
Cutting butternut squash can be a real challenge indeed so I can tell you I would be buying those frozen chunks if they ever arrive in our supermarket! The recipe sounds delicious and easy to make 🙂