Butternut Squash Macaroni Cheese - classic mac and cheese with pureed roasted butternut squash twist! Creamy and cheesy comfort food with delicious & nutritions veg added for good measure! Loved by kids & adults alike!
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4. Peel your butternut squash and cut into small chunks. Pop garlic cloves (in their skins) in the baking tin together with the squash (if using), sprinkle over some dried thyme or fresh thyme leaves, drizzle with oil and roast in preheated oven for aprox. 20 minutes until fork tender.
Boil large pan of salted water and cook pasta according to packet instructions or couple of minutes less for more al dente version (it will cook some more in the oven).
To prepare your cheese and butternut squash sauce melt butter on a low heat and add flour mixing vigorously until you got paste like consistency (roux). Add milk, mustard powder and grating of nutmeg and mix gently over low heat until mixture starts to thicken. Next add grated cheddar cheese and mix it in. Season well with salt and pepper.
Puree roasted butternut squash and garlic cloves (squeezed out of their skins), add it to the cheese sauce and mix until well combined.
Add your butternut squash cheese sauce to cooked pasta and mix well until sauce coats all of the pasta.
Pour onto prepared dish.
Prepare the topping by mixing breadcrumbs with grated parmesan. Sprinkle over the pasta and bake at 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4 for approx. 25min until golden and bubbly.
Enjoy with some green salad and crusty bread if you wish.
Notes
Nutritional information is approximate, per serving and should be treated as a guideline only.
If you've got puree already made (either tinned or one you've done before but without the garlic) and you don't want to turn on the oven for the sake of roasting three garlic cloves, you could infuse the milk you will be using for your cheese sauce. Simply pour the milk into the saucepan and add two (peeled) garlic cloves and bring it (almost) to boil. Turn it off and let it sit for few minutes (the longer the better). Fish the garlic out and use the infused milk as you would per recipe below. Alternatively, you can leave garlic out.
Storing & freezingIf you're left with some butternut squash macaroni cheese leftovers they will keep in the fridge for 3-4 days and you can easily reheat them in the microwave. You can make your mac and cheese in advance and freeze it for freezer to oven type of meal. Simply follow the recipe up until pouring the pasta into your baking dish (leave the topping out at this point). Let it cool completely, cover it tightly with aluminium foil and pop in the freezer for up to 3 months. When you are ready to bake, simply preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4 and bake from frozen (and still covered) for 1 hour. Remove the foil, sprinkle the breadcrumbs and parmesan topping and bake for another 20-30 minutes until nicely browned on top.