This creamy stovetop butternut squash mac and cheese is the ultimate comfort food. Roasted butternut squash, turned into a silky cheesy sauce, coating macaroni noodles and topped with crispy prosciutto. This easy butternut squash mac and cheese recipe is the perfect way to dress up an old classic.

Butternut squash

Butternut squash is available year round, but is best in season from early fall into winter. For this recipe, we only need 1 pound of diced squash, so you can either buy already cut squash or buy a small one and prep. When buying a squash you want one that feels heavy and the smaller the round bulb at the bottom, the less seeds you have to deal with.

Prepping squash

When cutting butternut squash, you want to make sure you use a very sharp large knife. Dull knives are dangerous. If the squash is slippery, you can secure it by using a dish towel to grip better.

1. Cut squash in half, in between the bulb and the stem
2. Using a spoon, remove the pulp and seeds
3. Using a vegetable peeler, peel all the skin from the squash (the dish towel comes in handy here too if it’s slipping around). Slice.
4. Cut into 1 inch cubes

Roasting the squash

Toss the cubed squash in olive oil, kosher salt, and pepper. Place on baking pan and roast at 425F for 25 minutes, flipping halfway through. You want the squash to be easily pierced with a fork and the caramelization adds an extra depth of flavor.

Cheese

When making mac and cheese, one big tip is grating your own cheese from a block. Pre-shredded cheese has a caking agent to keep it from clumping, which also doesn’t allow it to melt into the silky texture needed. For this recipe I use gruyere, which is a great melting cheese.

Prosciutto

Making crispy prosciutto is one of my favorite things to do. It makes the perfect salty garnish and bite to a dish. I love topping all sorts of pasta dishes with crispy prosciutto, like pesto! On 400F, place on a baking pan for 10 minutes until it shrinks and crisps up. It will easily crack by hand or you can use a knife to chop.

Making the sauce

1. Melt butter in the skillet until it’s frothy and bubbling
2. Add in shallots and sauté a few minutes until translucent
3. Add in garlic and fresh chopped thyme and sage
4. Add in your roasted squash and vegetable stock
5. Add in half and half. If you do not have half and half you can substitute whole milk

1. You can use an immersion blender to purée the squash or ladle into a a heat safe blender. If your immersion blender openings are showing when inserted in the pan, it’s too shallow and will spray everywhere. You can also ladle into a pyrex glass or bowl and immersion blend in that.
2. Add in the gruyere
3. Slowly stir until all the cheese is melted
4. Allow to come to a gentle boil, sauce should be thick and will remain separated if you run your finger down a spoon

Pasta water

Pasta water is liquid gold. Get in the habit of always saving pasta water before draining you pasta. The starchy salty pasta water when added to your homemade pasta sauce, will help give it that silky luxurious texture. I use a pyrex glass to scoop a glass out to save on the side or you can directly scoop the pasta out directly into the sauce and you’ll have the whole pot of water to add from.

Stir the macaroni into the cheese sauce. It will begin to thicken up as you stir to coat the pasta.

As it thickens up, this is where your liquid gold pasta water enters the picture. Add a few splashes at a time, while stirring, until the perfect consistency is achieved.

When ready to serve, sprinkle the crispy prosciutto over the top of the butternut squash macaroni and cheese. The crispy prosciutto helps offset the sweetness of the butternut squash by adding a salty bite to the dish.

This butternut squash mac and cheese recipe is the perfect comfort food and a great way to sneak a vegetable in for your kids too!

Looking for other pasta comfort food recipes?

• Cheesy Pesto Manicotti
• French Onion Pasta Bake
• Penne Alla Vodka
• Creamy Pesto Pasta
• Stuffed Pasta Shells

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