Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese Recipe

by Health Stand Nutrition | Jun 30, 2023

Your favourite comfort food with a healthy twist!

Written by Naomi Kereliuk, Acadia University Student in the Nutrition and Dietetics program and reviewed by our Health Stand Nutrition Dietitian Team 

This creamy and cheesy dish is perfect for any day of the week and the addition of nutrient-rich butternut squash creates the perfect balanced meal. Not only is it delicious, but it’s also a great way to sneak in some extra fiber and vitamins. Get ready to savor every bite and share it with your loved ones. Enjoy!

Makes 2 portions

What You Need:

½ of a small-medium butternut squash
1 cup macaroni noodles
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp of butter
¼ cup milk of choice
½ cup grated cheese of choice
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper

How to Make Butternut Mac & Cheese:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Chop squash in half, remove seeds, and peel.
Chop squash into 1” pieces and lay on a baking sheet with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes.
Bring a medium pot of water to a boil and cook the macaroni. Reserve ¼ cup of pasta water.
Heat a medium pan and add butter, milk, and pasta water. Bring to simmer then add grated cheese and stir continuously to make cheese sauce.
Add cheese sauce mix to blender with onion powder, garlic powder, and a little bit of salt and pepper.
Take squash out of the oven and add to blender. Blend all the ingredients until smooth and pour over macaroni noodles to serve.

Enjoy this tasty dish for lunch or dinner and let us know what you think in the comments below!

Nutrients per serving:

Calories – 786
Protein – 27 g
Carbohydrates – 30 g
Fat – 39 g
Fibre – 3 g

Looking for more practical meal planning tips and simple, dietitian-approved recipes?

Sign up for our FREE weekly e-newsletter: Sound Bites. Get practical nutrition tips, articles, videos, and simple recipes written by our team of Registered Dietitians so you can be sure to get the credible sound bites you need for everyday healthy living.

Find out why over 10,000 people subscribe to one of our richest resources! Subscribe below today.

Looking for more ways to use butternut squash? Use the leftover squash from this recipe and try these!

Butternut Squash and Apple Soup Recipe

Turkey Chili With Butternut Squash and Apples Recipe

Mexican butternut squash salad with beans

Health Stand Nutrition

Brought to you by our friendly Registered Dietitian team at Health Stand Nutrition Consulting Inc. For more balanced living advice check out our RESOURCE MEGA BANK of nutrition articles, videos, healthy recipes, newsletters and meal planning kits here: www.healthstandnutrition.com/personal-nutrition/resource-mega-bank/

Success stories

"I am a psychologist in private practice and it is very important to me that my clients have the best care with other health care professionals. For that reason Health Stand Nutrition is my only source for exceptional Dietitians. Andrea and her team provide highly knowledgeable, compassionate, and real world support to my clients who require assistance with food lifestyle. I trust my clients to them and you would be in excellent hands making them part of your health care team."

Adele Fox, Psychologist

“This is the first time I feel satisfied; my cravings have diminished dramatically and I have a whole new relationship with food. I am eating guilt-free for the first time in my life. My energy has also dramatically increased and I feel great!”

Rhonda Jenkins, Nutrition Counseling Client

“The Dieticians at Health Stand Nutrition help you to take action on the science behind eating well by making it practical, understandable, and fun. Their office is cozy and not at all clinical or intimidating. I felt like I was sitting down with a really smart, caring friend who wanted to help me make the best choices for my lifestyle and food preferences. They really are the best in the business.”

Marty Avery, Nutrition Counseling Client

“I have come to think of the program as a one stop shopping excursion for everything one needs to know about creating a joyous relationship with food and our bodies. In a single word, the course has gifted me with freedom from the punishing rigidity of disordered eating, old stories that never were true, and body dysmorphia that did nothing but make me lose sight of a body that has done everything I've asked, despite my careless dismissal of her needs. Now when I look in the mirror I find myself shifting from harsh criticism to gentle gratitude.”

Lynn Haley, Pursuit of Healthiness Online Course Participant

“I spent 3 hours when first diagnosed with type 2 diabetes. I learned more from my Dietitian about food in those 3 hours than I had learned in all the years of my life. I also love the newsletter, there is always something to learn.”

Peter Whitehead, Nutrition Counseling Client

“I didn’t realize how strong my “diet mentality” was, and all the rules I had in my head about food. I was in a cycle of reward/punish/binge/cringe. I booked with your business very reluctantly, on the repeated advice of my doctor, to get my slowly rising cholesterol levels in check. I thought I knew everything about food, and my behaviour with food, but I was definitely re-schooled. My weight is creeping down, I feel good about my diet, exercise, body image, and lifestyle.”

Amy Floyd, Nutrition Counseling Client

“Thanks Andrea for an amazing presentation, I have heard all positive remarks from attendees and the evaluations show the same sentiment. It is really gratifying when a speaker does their “homework” and weaves in our profession’s day to day challenges within their content, you did an awesome job of this! You truly took the “die” out of Dietician! Your information on healthy eating and simplifying how we can work towards this as we are all so busy really hit the mark. Andrea connects very well with her audience; she is energetic, funny, and very approachable.”

Carole Ann LaGrange, Transfusion Medicine Safety Officer

Event Planner for Laboratory Diagnostic Imaging Annual Event

“I am a family physician who sees patients with a myriad of eating concerns – from wanting to know how to plan healthy meals for active families, to weight loss, to eating disorders, and so on. I cannot recommend the Health Stand team highly enough. I have worked with (and been to!) other Dieticians in the past and too often find that they just ask for food logs and make suggestions that are easily obtained online or in books. The Dieticians at Health Stand offer much more than just telling clients what they “should be eating.” In contrast, the team really does more of a counselling practice, and they work hard to help their clients learn more about why their eating habits may be off track and not optimal for them, as well as helping people to effect change at a deep level that, most importantly, is sustainable for lifetime health.”

Dr. Deb Putnam, Family Physician

Nutrition Counseling Client & Referring Physician

“I am a busy mom, with kids in high level sports, working full-time downtown, and running our home acreage outside the City. I now have the knowledge and tools I need to plan for and manage the chaos of meal planning.”

Gillian Gray, Pursuit of Healthiness Online Course Participant

“As a construction company, we select speakers who can relate to our industry and its employees. Andrea’s message was delivered with humor and empathy. She makes people feel as though they can make changes without leaving behind every favorite food. Andrea focused her presentation on healthy eating as a way to keep energy high throughout the day. This message and the way it was delivered resonated with our predominantly male, blue collar culture. I would highly recommend Andrea as a speaker for groups such as ours. She will get your message across without alienating anyone in your audience – which is a huge hurdle when trying to introduce a wellness program in the workplace!”

Stephanie Wood, HR and Safety Manager

Fisher Construction Group, Burlington, WA

“I found my Dietitian warm, funny, and skilled at teaching nutrition concepts without the overwhelm. The general approach of each session was to mix science with emotion, which was exceedingly effective in helping me shift my perspective on food from one of anxiety to one of joy and curiosity.”

Erin Kronstedt, Nutrition Counseling Client

“Excellent presentation! What a refreshing change to have a speaker inspire rather than “lecture” about nutrition. Your captivating stories, tips and overall approach to healthy eating uplifts and puts people at ease. It was great to hear we don’t need to strive to be perfect eaters, and that small changes really can make a difference in how we feel and in our health. Thanks to Andrea, we have solutions to our everyday nutrition challenges that can actually work in real life!”

Tina Tamagi, Human Resources

ARC Resources Ltd.

“Had I not joined this course I would have struggled with no focus, low energy, and mindless eating. Excellent teaching and motivation. This is not just a course, it is a nutrition club with mentorship, support, and connections with other people with similar situations.”

Lorri Lawrence, Pursuit of Healthiness online course participant

Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese Recipe

Your favourite comfort food with a healthy twist!

What You Need:

How to Make Butternut Mac & Cheese:

Nutrients per serving:

Looking for more practical meal planning tips and simple, dietitian-approved recipes?

Looking for more ways to use butternut squash? Use the leftover squash from this recipe and try these!

Health Stand Nutrition

Submit a Comment Cancel reply

As seen in

Success stories

Satisfy your curiosity.

Pin It on Pinterest