Vegan Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese (Gluten-Free, Allergy-Free)

Out of this world, creamy Vegan Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese! It’s a healthy, gluten-free, and allergy-free recipe! No soy, nuts, dairy, or fake cheeses needed! Super easy and baked to perfection (or leave it unbaked!), this cheesy and kid-friendly butternut squash sauce is savory with fresh herbs and so quick to make along with your favorite pasta for a weeknight dinner or lunch!

I mean it when I say this vegan mac and cheese is OUT.OF.THIS.WORLD! It’s a creamy delicious butternut squash dream! Who needs cheese to make an ultra-creamy sauce to dress your favorite gluten-free noodles? Not us! You don’t even need nuts, soy, or store-bought processed dairy-free cheeses! You only need under 10 real food ingredients, 15 minutes or more if you want to bake it!

Simple Ingredients You’ll Need

We all love a recipe with less than 10 ingredients! Super easy, inexpensive, and quick to whip up in a flash!

• Olive Oil (or vegan butter)
• Sweet Onion
• Garlic
• BUTTERNUT SQUASH
• Unsweetened Non-Dairy MIlk
• Fresh Sage and Thyme
• Dried Rosemary
• Nutritional Yeast
• Gluten-Free Pasta
• Salt and Pepper (to taste!)
• Gluten-Free Breadcrumbs (optional, if you want to bake it!)

Fresh or Frozen Butternut Squash

If you don’t have time to roast or boil 4 cups of butternut squash, have no fear! I used frozen pre-cubed butternut squash! You only need about 1 pound of butternut squash, and using a bag of frozen squash is a major time saver (plus you don’t need to worry about peeling and chopping!)

How to Make the Butternut Squash Sauce

1. First, you’ll quickly saute the onion and garlic in a large pot, before adding the cubed butternut squash.
2. Once the squash has softened, add the milk, herbs, and nutritional yeast.
3. Blend the sauce until creamy and smooth, directly in the pot using an immersion blender or transferring it to a standard blender.

Use the Sauce in More Ways

You can stop right there and store your butternut squash sauce in the fridge for different meals throughout the week, freeze it for later, or use it with any pasta you have on hand! You can add vegetable stock for a deliciously creamy soup, dump it in a slow cooker with your favorite protein, or use it as a dip (butternut squash nachos perhaps?)!

Bake it or Leave it

Initially, I was going to stop right there with a simple stove-top vegan mac and cheese, but tossing it in a casserole dish to bake for 20 minutes sounded super cozy for a fall or winter meal! I’ll leave it up to you and whichever way you go, however much time you have, you will not be disappointed!

Leave it stove-top:

1. If you used an immersion blender, dump your sauce out into a bowl and set aside, then rinse out the pot you used to cook the sauce.
2. Cook 8 ounces of your favorite gluten-free pasta according to package directions, drain, and add it back to the pot along with the sauce (you may not need all of the sauce if you are not baking it, about 2 cups.)

To bake it:

1. Follow the same steps above, adding 2 cups of sauce to the cooked pasta before adding the pasta to an 8×8 casserole dish.
2. Add the rest of the sauce to the top of the pasta (make sure it covers all the noodles!), sprinkle on some gluten-free breadcrumbs if you’d like, and then bake the mac & cheese in a preheated oven at 350°F for about 20 minutes.

Storage & Additional Tips

• The stove-top and baked version of this vegan mac can be stored in the fridge for 5-6 days. You can reheat this in the microwave.
• To freeze this mac and cheese, I’d suggest going for the baked version, allowing it to cool completely, and freezing it, tightly wrapping the casserole dish in foil. You can leave the mac and cheese unbaked and freeze it the same way.
• When you want to reheat the mac & cheese, simply take it out of the freezer and bake at 400°F until heated through.
• Depending on the strength of your nutritional yeast, you can add more or less. I added 1/4 cup, but 3 tablespoons will work as well!
• For a high-protein, complete healthy dinner, I went with chickpea pasta, but you can use anything your family likes!
• If you do not want to add the fresh herbs, you can season your butternut squash sauce however you’d like or leave it completely plain for a toddler-friendly meal!
• This recipe is great year-round, not just during winter squash season! Using frozen squash is perfect for that too!

Your Next Healthy Family Dinner

The best way to hide some veggies (actually, squash is technically a fruit…) in a healthy and delicious family meal everyone will love! From dinner to lunch, to a perfect casserole freezer-meal you can make-ahead or bring to a friend in need! This recipe is 100%:

• Gluten-Free
• Vegan
• Allergy-free (Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Egg-Free, Nut-Free, Peanut-Free, Wheat-Free, Sesame-Free, Corn-Free, Coconut-Free)
• Sugar-Free
• Grain-Free & Protein-Packed (if you want!)
• Toddler & Kid-Friendly
• Healthy & Packed with Butternut Squash
• Freezer-Friendly & Great for Meal Prep

Vegan Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese Recipe

Print

This will be a meal you make WEEKLY (if not daily?). So yummy, everyone in the family will gladly gobble this vegan butternut squash mac and cheese up (and they won’t even care that’s it’s dairy-free!)

More Vegan Mac and Cheese Recipes:

• Baked Mini Gluten-Free Vegan Mac & Cheese Bites
• Curry Mac & Cheese
• Microwave Gluten-Free Vegan Mac & Cheese For One
• One-Pot Vegan Mac & Cheese
• Baked Vegan Mac & Cheese
• Nut-Free Vegan Mac n’ Cheeze

So tell me:

+ What’s your favorite way to use/eat butternut squash?

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