Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

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Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese is the epitome of Fall comfort food. The sauce is created by roasting sweet and creamy Butternut Squash and then blending it with three cheeses and seasoning it with nutmeg, smoked paprika and the other herbs and spices. This sauce is mixed together with rigatoni pasta and topped with a crispy sage, thyme and buttery breadcrumb topping. It is baked until it is hot and bubbly and just plain magical.

I have mentioned in other posts how I mourn the absence of Trader Joes in Montana. I won't go into my usual pity party, but I will get straight to the point in saying that I have been forced to come up with a replacement for their seasonal sellout, Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese. It is ridiciulously delicious and we look forward to it every Fall. But...I have to say...this might be even better! And the good/bad part is that this recipe allows for a much larger portion!

Ingredients...

• Butternut squash- So, fortunately, if you are going to do it, this is probably the most convenient time in history to cook with Butternut Squash! You can truly buy it in any possible form. From fresh, to canned, to frozen, to pre-cut. I can't speak about using canned or frozen forms, but I have cooked with both fresh whole and pre-cut Butternut Squash and I didn't see much of a difference. Both are good options. If you are peeling and cubing it yourself, just make sure you have a good peeler and good, sharp knife. Piece of cake.
• Olive Oil
• Butter
• Flour
• Half and Half
• Nutmeg
• Salt and pepper
• Dry mustard
• Smoked Paprika
• Garlic Powder
• Sharp Cheddar
• Gouda
• Parmesan
• Rigatoni
• Fresh Thyme
• Fresh Sage
• Panko Breadcrumbs

How To make this Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Drizzle Olive oil and Salt and Pepper on the squash and toss it so it is well coated. Roast it until it is nice and tender and caramelized.

Next, create a roux with the butter and flour, by melting the butter in a saucepan. When it is melted, sprinkle in the flour and whisk for about 2 minutes. This will cook the raw flour flavor out.

Next, slowly add the half and half. Whisk and simmer slowly until it is smooth and has thickened slightly.

Make sure you have a large sauce pot that can accommodate the cream mixture, the squash and the pasta. Add the roasted squash to the pot with cream mixture and spices and blend. This is where an immersion blender comes in handy. But you can also blend it (carefully!!) in the blender, or mash it by hand. So wiht whichever technique you choose, mash the squash into the cream mixture so it is nice and smooth.

Next, remove the pot from the heat and then add the cheese. Remove it from the heat because if the mixture is too hot, the cheese will, become, "grainy". That is no good. So, make sure you either turn the heat to low, or take your pot off the heat altogether.

Now it is time to add the cooked pasta! It might seem that there is an excessive amount of sauce. But not to worry, the pasta will soak some of it up and I think you will find that it is just right. At this point, you can call it good and it will be perfectly delicious mac and cheese as is. However, I would suggest you keep going. It isn't too much more work, but the end result is worth every bit of it!

In a skillet, melt ¼ cup of butter. Once it has melted, add the chopped sage and thyme. Let it sizzle in the butter for about a minute. It will become super fragrant. Add 1 cup of Panko and stir it occasionally until it is golden brown and toasted.

You can either pour your mac and cheese into a nice, big casserole dish, or you can spoon it into individual serving bowls. Either way is perfectly fine. Top the mac and cheese with the crumb mixture and pop it in the oven on 350° for about 30 minutes. Just long enough for the crumb topping to brown and the sauce to get bubbly. Remove and let sit for about 10 minutes before you serve. Be aware that this dish holds its heat quite well. So, be careful with that first bite. It never fails to make us yelp. We have yet learn patience with this mac and cheese. It is so hard, but I promise it's worth the wait!

Helpful Kitchen Tools...

There are only a couple of very important tools that you should have for this recipe. If you are cutting the Butternut Squash yourself, make sure you have a nice, sharp large Chef knife or Santoku. I use Shun knives (like this one) and absolutely love them. I believe they are probably the best investment you can make in your kitchen tools. If you are looking for a very nice gift for someone who loves to cook, I would recommend an 8" or 10" Shun Chef's knife. That was my first real quality knife, and what a difference! I have a whole set of Shun knives now and use them every day.

Another important, but small investment is a good peeler. I have tried a whole variety of peelers and my absolute, no contest favorite is the Kuhn Rikon Peeler. It is such cheap fun, and a good peeler in the kitchen is so important! It is another great stocking stuffer, host gift, etc. for a cook in your life (or yourself! ).

Also, you will need a way to blend the squash. My brother Greggie gave me my immersion blender one year for Christmas. I. LOVE. IT. If you don't have an immersion blender, I would highly consider getting one. In this recipe you can certainly blend everything in your blender, but it will take several rounds of blending, as there is quite a bit to blend. (Yikes, Mollie, blend much?! ha!) You can also mash it by hand with a potato masher, but it's just more work. Trust me when I tell you that immersion blenders are game changers in the kitchen and they are one of those super handy tools that are fairly inexpensive and what's better~ they don't take up much space. It might actually be my favorite "extra" appliance.

The other tool you will need is a large stock pot to blend the squash and cheese in. I suppose you will also need some individual oven proof serving bowls, or a larger casserole dish. That should just about do it!

Thank you so much for checking out this recipe! If you make it, I would love to hear from you in the comments below! Thank you for visiting Mollie in Montana~*♥️

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