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This cheesy butternut squash pasta recipe is loaded with cozy fall squash and ooey, gooey cheese, making it a perfect meal to warm up to on crisp fall evenings. Even better, it can be ready in less than an hour!
Reasons You’ll Love This Recipe
- Healthy Alternative: My family loves any kind of mac and cheese. This recipe is the perfect healthier option while still providing the cheesy goodness we all love.
- Family Friendly: What kid doesn’t love mac and cheese? With this recipe, you will be able to sneak in some vegetables, and they will still gobble it up!
- Seasonal: I love using squash for all sorts of fun fall recipes. Cozying up to a bowl of butternut squash soup or diving into this hearty harvest bowl.
Ingredients Needed for Cheesy Butternut Squash Pasta
With just a few simple ingredients, you will create a warm and cozy fall meal your whole family will love. For exact measurements, scroll to the bottom of the post, where you will find them in the recipe card.
- Elbow Macaroni: This pasta shape is great for holding all of the creamy, cheesy, butternut squash sauce, so every bite is flavorful and delicious.
- Butternut Squash: The star of the show! It provides a sweet, creamy flavor and texture that complements the other flavors in the dish.
- Unsalted Butter: Provides rich, creamy texture and warm flavor. It needs to be melted for this recipe.
- Whole Milk: Adds moisture and helps thin the sauce so it spreads evenly over the noodles.
- Half and Half: Gives the sauce a sweet, creamy texture and flavor.
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese: I love using sharp cheddar for this dish because it adds a bold, vibrant flavor that really goes well with the creamy butternut squash.
- Salt and Pepper: To Taste!
How to Make Butternut Squash Pasta
This recipe comes together quickly and easily! If you’re a busy mom like me, I recommend using store-bought cut-up butternut squash to save yourself even more time! Either way, your family is going to love this fun fall meal!
- Cook Pasta: Cook the pasta according to the package directions until it is al dente. Drain and set aside in a separate bowl.
- Prep Squash: While the pasta is cooking, peel and de-seed the squash and dice it into 1-inch cubes. Boil the squash in the same pot you cooked the pasta in until it is tender and easily mushed.
- Blend: Add the squash, melted butter, milk, and half and half to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Combine: Add the pasta back to the pot over medium heat, along with the squash puree and cheddar cheese, then stir. Salt and black pepper to taste.
- Simmer: Cook everything together, stirring continuously, until the cheese has fully melted and the sauce has thickened and cooked into the noodles a bit.
- Serve: Serve with additional cheese on top!
Recipe Tips and Variations
This recipe is so simple and foolproof, you can play around with it. You could try different kinds of pasta and cheese to get it to taste just the way you like! Here are some ideas to get you started
- Pasta Options: You can use any kind of pasta in place of the macaroni noodles. I like using one like elbows or shells because it holds the sauce well.
- Seasonings: I keep this recipe simple by seasoning it with salt and pepper, but you can season it to your liking. Other good additions are fresh parsley, red pepper flakes, paprika, oregano, or sage.
- Simplify Butternut Squash: Some grocery stores sell cubed squash seasonally in the deli area, which takes out the bulk of the work in this recipe if you can find it! You can also use frozen cubed butternut squash, just thaw before using.
- Peeling Butternut Squash: To make peeling your butternut squash easier, you can microwave it for 1-2 minutes. Just make sure to poke a few holes in it to allow steam to release.
Leftover Cheesy Butternut Squash Pasta
- Refrigerate: Store leftovers in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to 5 days.
More Butternut Squash Recipes
When fall weather hits, I am ready to put on my cozy sweaters and eat all of the warm seasonal squash recipes. Soups, vegetables, chicken, hearty salads, they are all so tasty and delicious! Here are some of my favorite butternut squash recipes!
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Cheesy Butternut Squash Pasta
Ingredients
- 12 ounces elbow macaroni
- 4 cups butternut squash cut into 1-inch pieces
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 cup whole milk
- ⅔ cup half and half
- 2 cups sharp cheddar cheese grated
- Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package directions until it is al dente. Drain and set aside in a separate bowl.
- While the pasta is cooking peel and de-seed the squash and dice it into 1-inch cubes. Boil the squash in the same pot you cooked the pasta in until it is tender and easily mushed.
- Add the squash, melted butter, milk, and half and half to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Add the pasta back to the pot over medium heat along with the squash puree, cheddar cheese, and salt and pepper to taste.
- Cook everything together stirring continuously until the cheese has fully melted and the sauce has thickened and cooked into the noodles a bit.
- Serve with additional cheese on top!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
I left out the veggie broth and just added milk to get the right texture. I also grated in a glove of garlic. This was amazing! Will definitely be making this again!!
That sounds great! I am glad you were able to make this recipe your own. Thanks so much for sharing! XOXO
I found this to be a tad bland. Adding 1 Tbsp cinnamon and dash of nutmeg really helped brighten the flavors.
Thanks for sharing!! I like the addition of nutmeg and cinnamon! Great idea!
Too bland even with sharp cheddar cheese.
The flavor of this mac and cheese was really good! My boys who won’t touch butternut squash came back for seconds and thirds. My only complaint was that the sauce was so thin nearly watery, I ended up having to add more macaroni. Next time, I think I will leave out the vegetable broth.
Made this a week ago for family and lots of little ones. We all loved it and wanted more. We will definitely make this again.
How many lbs is 3-4 cups cubed butternut squash.
Does this sauce freeze well?
Yes ! I make a big back and freeze half of it. Easy and quick to heat up throw fresh elbows noodles on top
How many does this serve? Can I serve as a main dish? I have a family of 3. It just seems like 1.5 cups of pasta won’t make very much. I could always double the recipe if need be.
1 cup of uncooked pasta should yield about 2 cups cooked, so I would expect it to be about 3 cups. As a main dish, I’d say that only serves two people. As a side dish, probably four people.
Planning on making this for a potluck. How many servings does it make?
Thanks!
This recipe WILL definitely be making a recurring appearance at our home! Even my very picky son thought it was tasty! I used a corn/quinoa pasta, cashew milk, and also held back some of the sauce as the consistency was perfect. The extra “sauce” is now a single serving of butternut squash soup! Thank you so much for sharing!
This was absolutely delicious! I held about half a cup of the puree back because I thought the consistency was perfect. I was pleasantly surprised at its silky, smooth texture. Using extra sharp Cabot cheddar made the squash totally undetectable. Thanks for another great recipe!
Made the cheesy butternut squash pasta, i loved it. Used gluten free penne pasta and coconut milk and kosher salt. Completely satisfying. Will definitely make again
This is a great recipe that I will make again. The butternut squash can be very bland though, so sharp/old cheese is a must! I opted to partially microwave my squash first, to make it easier to cube, and I cooked the squash in a skillet rather than boiling it.
I make a recipe very similar to this, but I use the frozen squash puree. It works quite well. For anyone not a fan of squash, no one I have ever served this to has noticed any squash flavor.
Im not the biggest fan of squash..hows the taste of this? is it neutral with the cheese?
I have made this many times, it is a slightly sweet taste, but not overpowering. The squash goes very well with cheddar. It’s very good!
Would the flavours work with an acorn squash?
Could I use canned squash? How much would I use? Thanks