Roasted Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

This is mac and cheese on butternut squashy steriods, it is so good. I got an enormous butternut squash at Schramm's and roasted it a couple days ago since I knew I wouldn't have time to roast and make this on the same workday evening. 

So when I did make this it was really quick. Making the cheesy squashy part took about as long as boiling the pasta.

I'm just going to post the original recipe from How Sweet It Is because I'm really not sure about the quantities I used for anything - I made it in a loaf pan with about a third of the huge squash I'd roasted. I also used cream cheese instead of mascarpone cheese. I roasted the butternut squash with cayenne pepper instead of nutmeg. I used a different kind of pasta, I think it's called fusilli, and I used monterey jack cheese instead of mozza and parmesan. No bacon this time. I'm sure it would be great, but I don't think it needs it. I added halved grape tomatoes on top.

---

Roasted Butternut Squash Baked Penne

From How Sweet It Is

ingredients:

1 pound butternut squash, peeled and chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 small shallot, chopped
1 tablespoons flour
1/4 cup mascarpone cheese
2/3 cup milk
1/2 pound whole wheat penne
1/4 cup freshly grated mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
sage leaves
crumbed bacon, if desired

directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Peel and chop squash, then lay on a baking sheet. Toss with olive oil, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Roast for 20 minutes, flip once, then roast for 20 minutes more. Remove from oven and add squash to a bowl, then mash with a potato masher or fork.

Prepare water for pasta and cook according to directions.

While pasta is cooking, heat a medium saucepan over medium heat and add butter and shallots. Whisk continuously until the butter browns and small brown bits appear in the pan. Immediately whisk in flour and cook for 1-2 minutes. Add milk, mascarpone and mashed squash, then mix until until combined. I chose to keep my “sauce” in a thicker state (see the second picture), but if you’d like it thinned out a bit more, add additional milk. At this point, taste and see if you’d like any additional salt or spices – this will most likely depend on how seasoned your squash was. I added another small pinch of salt.

Add pasta to an 8 or 9-inch baking dish. Pour sauce over top, then use a spoon to fold the sauce into the penne, coating it completely. Top with shredded cheeses and fresh sage leaves. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until cheese is golden and bubbly. Garnish with crumbled bacon if desired.

Note: this is a very “thick” pasta, and it is not swimming in sauce. If you would prefer it to be “saucy,” I’d advise adding more milk to the sauce while cooking. It is great reheated, and adding 1-2 tablespoons of milk when reheating helps it come together nicely.