Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

4 of 5 (250)
member ratings
Nutritional Info
  • Servings Per Recipe: 8
  • Amount Per Serving
  • Calories: 230.0
  • Total Fat: 4.3 g
  • Cholesterol: 10.5 mg
  • Sodium: 305.7 mg
  • Total Carbs: 35.8 g
  • Dietary Fiber: 5.2 g
  • Protein: 13.2 g

View full nutritional breakdown of Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese calories by ingredient


Introduction

Butternut squash helps slim down this macaroni and cheese. You can't taste it, and it boosts the nutritional value of the dish! Butternut squash helps slim down this macaroni and cheese. You can't taste it, and it boosts the nutritional value of the dish!
Number of Servings: 8

Ingredients

    1 small butternut squash (about 1 pound), peeled, seeded, and diced (about 3 cups)
    1 cup low-sodium vegetable broth
    1 1/2 cups skim milk
    Pinch of nutmeg
    Pinch of cayenne pepper
    3/4 teaspoon salt
    Freshly ground black pepper
    1 pound whole wheat spirals
    1 cup shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
    4 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, grated
    1/2 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
    2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
    1 teaspoon olive oil
    Olive-oil cooking spray, for baking pan

Tips

Serve the leftovers in a thermos for a tasty lunch! Want to get kids off to a healthy start this school year? So does SparkPeople! With
"A Month of Fun and Healthy School Lunches,"
you'll end the food fight and get kids excited about packing lunch--with fun yet simple meals they'll actually eat.


Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Combine squash, stock, and milk in a medium saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until squash is tender when pierced with a fork, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat.

Add noodles to boiling water; cook according to package instructions, about 8 minutes. Mash contents of saucepan; stir in nutmeg, cayenne, and salt, and season with black pepper. Stir to combine.

Drain pasta, and transfer to a large bowl; stir in squash mixture, cheddar, ricotta, and 2 tablespoons Parmesan.

Coat a 9x9 inch baking dish with olive oil spray and pour in the noodle mixture.

In a small bowl, combine breadcrumbs, remaining parmesan, and oil; sprinkle evenly over noodles.

Cover with foil, and bake 20 minutes. Remove foil, and continue baking until lightly browned and crisp on top, 20 to 40 minutes more. Serve immediately.

Serves 8!


Member Ratings For This Recipe


  • no profile photo

    Incredible!
    41 of 41 people found this review helpful
    This was really good. My family wants it again.
    They didn't care for the topping though, but no big deal, I'll just skip it.
    I used a frozen pkg of squash from the grocery store, it worked great.
    - 1/29/09


  • no profile photo

    Very Good
    41 of 43 people found this review helpful
    This was good. Not very cheesy and I could definitley taste the squash, but I LIKE butternut squash so this was fine. Might add more cheese next time and puree squash mixture in blender to make it less noticeable so my husband won't know it's there. Wish the recipe was less time consuming though. - 12/8/08


  • no profile photo

    Incredible!
    36 of 36 people found this review helpful
    This turned out delicious!! I would totally make this agian!! I substituted reduced fat cream cheese for the ricotta and used reduced fat mexican shredded cheese we had in the house.I blended the mixture with a hand mixer before mixing it with the pasta. Turned out amazing! Thanks!! - 10/5/10


  • no profile photo

    Incredible!
    22 of 22 people found this review helpful
    This was really tasty, although I might use an even sharper cheese the next time. Substituted tofu for ricotta to avoid a trip to the store, left off the crumbs,sprinkled parmesan on the top cooking cooking spray to help the top brown. - 10/2/10


  • no profile photo

    Very Good
    21 of 22 people found this review helpful
    This was great! I used frozen yellow squash instead of butternut squash (it was what I could find), and shells instead of spirals, but it still worked out. I'll definitely hold onto this recipe! - 4/6/09