Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

Happy New Year!  Here's a great recipe to start off 2013 in a healthy way!!  I'll cut right to the chase...

I was pleasantly surprised by this deceivingly cheesy treat.  The whole dish has just 8 ounces of cheese.  Yes.  Just 8 ounces!  The butternut squash gave the dish it's traditional yellow-orange color and a mildly sweet, fresh taste. This meal looks like a heavy, cheesy macaroni dish, but it's light enough that you'll want to eat the entire pan full.  Yes.  It's on the menu this week too!  It's just that good.


Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cheese - adapted from this recipe

3 cups uncooked whole wheat pasta shells
4 cups 1/2 cubed uncooked butternut squash
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg I omitted because I didn't have any!
3/4 cup low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
1 1/2 cups skim milk
6 ounces freshly grated fontina cheese
2 ounces freshly grated parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons fine breadcrumbs
fresh chopped herbs for garnish (sage, basil, cilantro, thyme)  I omitted because I didn't have any!

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Cook pasta according to package directions, drain and set aside.  

While pasta is cooking, prepare squash.  I was fortunate enough to find mine prepared with skin removed and diced in the produce section.  (Here's a GREAT tutorial to clean and cut your own!)  I did chop all the pieces to uniform 1/2 inch cube sizes before cooking to ensure even cooking time.

Heat a large oven-safe skillet over medium-low heat (you don't need an oven-safe skillet - we'll talk about this later!).  Add olive oil, squash, salt, pepper and nutmeg (if you have it).  Add stock and cover skillet, cooking for 15 - 20 minutes, stirring occasionally until squash is soft and can be easily mashed.  

Meanwhile, grate the Fontina cheese.  I had never used it before and had to ask where I would find it.  It was located in the Italian cheese section.  It's a mild and creamy cheese.

Remove cover and reduce heat to low.  Mash squash with a potato masher or forks, smoothing it out with a spoon to remove all of the chunks .

Oops. I just now read the smooth it out with a spoon statement!  Haha! You can see how chunky mine still was ;)  I also thought that you could use an immersion blender.  I might try that this time.

Add in milk, 4 ounces of fontina, all of the parmesan, and stir until melted and smooth, about 5 minutes.  (If mixture seems too starchy, add in additional milk 1/4 cup at a time, stirring for a while.)

Fold pasta into sauce, taking a few minutes to fully toss the pasta so they are evenly coated.  

Top with remaining fontina (or more if desired) and breadcrumbs and bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.

Caution: Don't do like I did! I burnt my hand on the hot pan by grabbing the handle.  Yes, my entire hand was on fire for the rest of the night.  I don't usually put these pans in the oven.  With a hungry, cranky baby I was trying to quickly get the last minute touches of dinner together and turned around and grabbed the handle without thinking. Here is where I think you can transfer the contents of the pan into an oven safe 9 x 13 dish before you bake it.  That way it's more likely to register with your brain (or hopefully my brain will get with the program next time!!!) that "Dumby.  Don't touch me without pot holders.  I'm HOT because I just came out of the oven!"

Sprinkle with fresh herbs and ENJOY!  

The Verdict
I've always been intimidated by butternut squash.  I don't know why, but I have.  Maybe it's the hard shell or the fact that I've had a bad experience with stringy, unappetizing squash.  But this is different.  Easy.  I'm sold!  Especially as Little One gets older I will start making most of my macaroni and cheese using this method.  I cannot begin to tell you how impressed I was by the quality and flavor of this dish.  Don't get me wrong - there's a time and place for the insanely ooey gooey cheesy mac & cheese (which this recipe is not), but if using this recipe means I get to eat it more often... and be healthier for it... I'm all in!  And it's SO quick and easy!!  The original recipe calls for the addition of brown butter.  Oh. My. Talk about taking this to the next level!  Check out her website for instructions.

Try out some butternut squash today - cheers to a New You in the New Year!  Intimidated by at-home cooking?  Make a New Year's resolution to try a new recipe once a week... or twice a month.  I guarantee you - you will save time, money, and calories - by cooking and eating at home.  Not to mention the added  benefits of that sense of accomplishment by providing for your family in a nutritious way.  Everything I make doesn't come out perfectly and we have had our share of forcing down (ok, let's be honest - tossing!) some outrageously disgusting meals.  But that's part of the journey.  I promise the more you cook, the more risks you make, the better you will become!!  I found my very first cookbook from college the other week - a 4 ingredient cookbook.  Every recipe only took 4 ingredients.  We ate a lot of grilled ham and cheeses on the George Foreman!  But, we made it through on an incredibly tight budget - all the while I was gaining confidence and experience as an at-home chef.  I am by no means an expert - but I would love to help you on your journey!

I'd love to hear from you :)  Let me know if you have any questions or how I can help you meet the needs of your family!!