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This Vegan Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese is the most-made recipe on this site — and after more than a decade of families cooking it on repeat, I think I know why.
It’s deeply creamy, golden, and comforting in exactly the way a great mac and cheese should be. And it’s made entirely from whole food ingredients — no fake cheese, no nutritional yeast required, no processed anything. Just butternut squash, cashews, a handful of spices, and noodles.
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As featured on CBS’ The Doctors in 2017 — I shared this recipe with Dr. Travis and we served it to kids in a blind taste test without telling them it was vegan. Every single one of them loved it. That moment still makes me smile. Watch the full segment here.
With over 575 five-star ratings and more than 112,000 shares, this butternut squash mac and cheese has earned its place as a genuine family staple — for vegan families, omnivore families, toddlers, teenagers, and everyone in between.
My own family has been asking for it since 2014. Yours will too.
Ingredients you need
Ingredient notes and substitutions
- Noodles ~ Elbow noodles are classic for mac and cheese, but this sauce will work with any of your favorite noodle shapes. Small shells, penne, and rotini are our other faves for this dish.
Use gluten free noodles, if you need/want.
Pro tip: After learning of our daughters gluten sensitivity, we have tried nearly every kind of gluten-free pasta out there. Our favorite is by far the Tinkyada noodles! They stay al dente, they don’t clump up, my kids can’t tell the difference between these and regular pasta, and its made from just organic brown rice and water! Try it!
- Butternut Squash ~ This fall veggie gives us the classic golden color of mac and cheese. It’s nutty and earthy with a slight sweetness. It blends up super creamy when paired with the other ingredients.
I buy a whole one and prep it myself, but most grocery stores now sell pre-chopped butternut squash in the produce section and you can often find it frozen as well. It costs more to buy the pre-chopped kind, but it can save you time. Use what you’re comfortable with.
Pumpkin or sweet potato can be used instead though both will give slight flavor variations to the final dish.
Love butternut squash? You’ll love my vegan butternut squash risotto and baked butternut squash fries!
- Cashews ~ Raw cashews blend up silky smooth and help to give this dish its thick creamy texture.
For a nut-free version, try using white beans, like cannellini or Great Northern, in place of the cashews. Many readers have done this with great success.
- Spices ~ Mustard provides a sharp, tangy kick that balances the the other flavors and helps to create a “cheesy” taste.
A clove of fresh garlic can be used instead of the garlic powder.
Smoked paprika lends a subtle smokiness that is great paired with “cheesy” dishes.
Turmeric adds extra oomph to the bright golden color. If you don’t have it, you can leave it out.
I was always taught to add a pinch of nutmeg to creamy “white” sauces (Thank you, Food Network). You won’t taste it in the final dish, but it gives a little extra something to the background flavors. Again, if you don’t have it, you can leave it out.
- Optional add-ins ~ Nutritional yeast has become a pantry staple in plant-based kitchens for good reason — 2 tablespoons blended into the sauce adds a subtle savory, “cheesy” depth that takes this dish to the next level. It’s widely available at most grocery stores now, including Whole Foods, Target, and Trader Joe’s.
Mellow white miso (1 tablespoon) is another excellent option that adds a similar savory richness. Both are optional — the sauce is genuinely delicious without either — but worth trying if you have them on hand.
How to make the recipe
This recipe comes together in two simple steps: make the sauce, toss with noodles. That’s really it.
Cook the pasta to al dente according to package directions. Don’t forget to save ½ cup of the cooking liquid before draining — the starch in that water is what makes the sauce silky and glossy.
Please scroll down to the recipe card for exact ingredient measurements and instructions.
- Step 1: Slice the butternut squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Peel the squash with a vegetable peeler or a sharp knife and chop it into cubes and slice the onion thinly.
- Step 2: Add the squash and onions along with the raw cashews to a pot and cover with water by about 1 to 2 inches.
- Step 3: Cook the mixture until the squash is tender. Pierce a piece with a fork or knife. If it slides in easily, it’s done.
- Step 4: Drain.
- Step 5: Add the veggies and cashews to a blender along with the remaining ingredients, including the reserved pasta cooking water.
- Step 6: Blend until perfectly smooth.
Blend until perfectly smooth.
Serving suggestions
This mac and cheese is a complete meal on its own, but here are some easy ways to round it out or dress it up:
- Add some frozen green peas to the pasta just before draining.
- Add a sprinkle of vegan parmesan cheese or store-bought shredded vegan cheddar to individual servings.
- Crumble some vegan tempeh bacon over the top before serving.
- Transfer the cooked butternut squash mac and cheese to a casserole dish, sprinkle with breadcrumbs, and bake in the oven until the top is browned and crispy.
- Serve it alongside baked tofu or vegan chicken cutlets and a some garlic green beans or a side salad.
Storage and freezing
Fridge: The sauce mixed with the noodles will keep in the fridge for several days. You will need to add a bit more liquid – plain, unsweetened almond or oat milk works well – when reheating.
The sauce by itself is great for prepping ahead. It will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for 4 to 5 days.
Freezer: You can also freeze the mac and cheese (noodles and sauce together), but please note that the noodles will likely be a tad soft when thawing and reheating.
The sauce by itself can be thawed and reheated without losing any of the creamy texture. Again, you may need to add a bit more liquid, however, to loosen it up as it will thicken as it sits.
Pro tips and tricks
~ Use raw cashews. They blend up super creamy and have a mild sweet flavor that complements the other flavors of the butternut squash mac and cheese. Roasted salted cashews will be too strong.
~ Although the peel of butternut squash is edible, peel it! The end result will be much creamier without the peel.
~ To save time, feel free to use pre-chopped butternut squash found in the produce section of the grocery store. Frozen chopped squash can also be used.
~ Don’t forget to save ½ cup of the pasta cooking liquid before draining the pasta! The starch in the water helps create the silky, creamy texture.
~ Use a high speed blender to ensure the sauce blends up silky smooth.
~ If you are making this sauce on it’s own without the pasta, you can use water, unsweetened plain non-dairy milk, or the cooking liquid from the squash/onions in place of the pasta cooking water.
~ For an extra “cheesy” flavor, try adding 1 tablespoon of mellow white miso (note: contains soy) or 2 tablespoons of nutritional yeast. Blend into the sauce until smooth.
~ To make this nut-free, use white beans (cannelllini or Great Northern) instead of cashews.
~ This sauce is already gluten-free. To make the final dish gluten-free, choose gluten-free noodles.
~ This dreamy butternut squash mac and cheese sauce is so versatile. Try serving it over baked potatoes or steamed broccoli, use it as a dip for tortilla chips or french fries, or stir it into soups or chilis. It can also be made into Vegan Chili Mac.
~ Try roasting instead of boiling. Reader Stephanie discovered that roasting the squash, onions, and a few garlic cloves in the oven (rather than boiling) creates a deeper, slightly caramelized flavor. Roast at 400°F for 25–30 minutes until golden, then blend as directed. It takes a little longer but the flavor payoff is wonderful — especially during the fall and winter months.
FAQs
While this butternut squash mac and cheese doesn’t taste exactly like what you’ll get from that classic blue box or from a homemade dairy loaded version, it does have the creamy, earthy, slightly sharp/tangy flavor that everyone loves. It is a delicious pasta dish that I know you’ll love!
Technically, the peel of this winter squash is edible. However, this butternut squash mac and cheese will be much creamier if you get rid of it.
Yes — and it’s a wonderful variation! Roasting the squash, onion, and a few garlic cloves at 400°F for 25–30 minutes until caramelized gives the sauce a deeper, slightly sweeter flavor. Blend as directed, using pasta water or vegetable broth in place of the boiling liquid. This variation is especially good in fall and winter when you want a richer, more complex flavor.
Yes. Frozen chopped butternut squash works perfectly and saves a lot of prep time. No need to thaw first — just add it straight to the pot with the onion and cashews and cook until tender.
Yes. If you have a citrus sensitivity, you can leave the lemon out entirely or substitute a small splash of apple cider vinegar for a similar brightness without the citrus. The sauce is still delicious without it.
Definitely. Transfer the finished mac and cheese to a casserole dish, top with breadcrumbs (regular or gluten-free) and a drizzle of olive oil, and bake at 375°F for 20–25 minutes until the top is golden and crispy. It’s a wonderful way to serve this for a dinner party or holiday table.
I hope you love this recipe as much as we do! If you tried it, please use the star rating system in the recipe card and leave a comment with your feedback. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
For even more easy family recipes, be sure to check out my cookbook, The Meatless Monday Family Cookbook!
Creamy Vegan Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Recommended Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 ounces package small macaroni noodles cooked according to package directions (use gluten free noodles, if desired)
- ½ cup reserved pasta cooking liquid or from the squash/onion…either one will work)
- 1 ½ cups peeled, cubed butternut squash
- ½ large sweet onion peeled and sliced
- ¼ cup raw cashews
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon dijon mustard
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- ⅛ teaspoon black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
- ⅛ teaspoon nutmeg
Instructions
- Add butternut squash, onions and cashews to a pot and cover with water by at least an inch or two. Bring to a boil, turn down heat to medium and simmer until vegetables are tender (about 15 minutes or so).
- Meanwhile, cook macaroni noodles according to package directions. Reserve ½ cup cooking liquid once noodles are done cooking and before draining. Place noodles back in pot and set aside.
- When squash and onions are tender, drain and add them to a high speed blender with the cashews, lemon juice, salt, dijon, garlic powder, black pepper, smoked paprika, turmeric, nutmeg and reserved cooking liquid from the noodles. Blend until completely smooth. Use a tamper if necessary to push ingredients to the bottom of the blender.
- Add butternut squash sauce to the macaroni noodles and stir, making sure every noodle is covered in sauce. Warm through if needed.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition values are calculated using online calculators and are estimates only. Please verify using your own data.
Anna
Thank you so much for this recipe! It was surprisingly delicious. I fed it to my 10 year old, not letting her in on the little secret of it being vegan. She LOVED it, and so much so that she asked for leftovers for her lunch today at school. This makes my heart happy. 😊
I also fed it to her dad (my ex husband) and he devoured it AND asked for seconds. I’m new to this way of eating and with these types of recipes, it makes me want to stay on track! Thanks again!
Jenn S.
This is so awesome to hear, Anna!! Makes my heart happy too! Thank you so much for stopping by to share your feedback! Happy New Year. And if you have any other questions, feel free to shoot me an e-mail or come hang out with us in my Facebook Group. 🙂
Sarah
All I can taste is the mustard. Starting over and scrapping the mustard this time.
Jenn S.
Sorry to hear that. Let me know how the second round goes, Sarah!
Sarah
The second time I got rid of the mustard, and found it didn’t resemble cheese flavor or texture. Tried a third time adding nutritional yeast. It still just tasted like seasoned, pureed butternut squash. I’m glad others like it so much, unfortunately no one in my house did. So bummed because it looks amazing in the pictures.
Jenn S.
Sorry to hear that, Sarah. Sounds like this recipe just isn’t for you. I appreciate your feedback.
Becky Keppel
Hi Jenn,
Third time making this Vegan Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese. Super delicious and satisfying. I doubled the recipe to make 16oz. We love leftovers. I also add more squash and onions and squash liquid. Only because we like our mac and cheese extra saucy. Any leftovers I have tonight I will freeze. Can’t be much different than a frozen lasagna I figure.
Jenn S.
Thank you so much, Becky! I’m thrilled that you love it so much! Lately, I have been adding extra squash and liquid too to make it extra saucy. I’ve had other readers say that have frozen it just fine, so you should be good there. Thanks so much for stopping by to comment. I really appreciate it!
Araia
How do you substitute cashews with sunflower seeds?
Jenn S.
Hi, Araia. Just replace the cashews with the same amount of raw sunflower seeds and blend as per the instructions. Enjoy!
Rebecca
Any way to make this nut free? Have you ever subbed tahini for the cashews? Also can you freeze this?
Jenn S.
I haven’t made it any other way, but many readers have subbed white beans with success. I think tahini would be great actually! Or sunflower seeds. Freezing it might make the noodles a bit mushy when you reheat, but if you don’t mind that, it should work. Let me know how it turns out!
Jenna Patterson
Hi there!!
My partner has a not allergy but I really want to make him the Baked Buffalo Chickpea taquitos. Is there a substitute I could use for the cashews in this sauce?
Jenn S.
Hi, Jenna. Many people have used white beans in place of the cashews with success. You could also try sunflower seeds. Let me know how it turns out. Enjoy!
Jaclyn
SO AMAZING!!!
Jenn S.
Thank you, Jaclyn!!
Debra Whitley
I just made this for lunch today exactly as the recipe calls for in my Vitamix and it is absolutely delishious! My husband and I became vegans for health reasons starting 2 weeks ago and I’m happy to report, with recipes like this, it’s been easier than I thought.
Jenn S.
Yay!! I’m so happy you both loved it, Debra! I hope you find many more delicious recipes from my site to love as well. Good luck on your journey!
AnnMarie
How long do you have to soar the cashews for? Wanted to make this tonight but forgot to soak them! Do they require overnight soaking?
Jenn S.
Hi, AnnMarie. Do you have a high speed blender? If so, just 30 minutes is all the soaking you need. If you’re blender is not as high powered as a Vitamix or Blendtec, you can soak for several hours and then throw them in the boiling water with the veggies too just to make sure they get nice and soft. Enjoy!
AnnMarie
I have a Ninja. Is that considered a high speed blender?
Jenn S.
How many watts? Vitamix has between 1300-1500 depending on the model. If it’s less than that – I would definitely soak longer and throw them in the boiling water with the veggies just to make sure they blend well.
Ashley
SO AMAZING!
I’ve tried sweet potato mac and cheese, and it was alright but this was so good! I’m usually pretty skeptical of vegan cheese sauces, but I think I’ve found my new go to recipe! My 2 year old, and cheese lover husband loved it to. Thank you!
Jenn S.
Yay!! I’m so happy to hear you all loved it, Ashley! Thank you! Have a great weekend!
Ashley V.
Hello! I am very interested in making this recipe! Would the recipe taste the same and produce the same consistency if I used an equal amount of pine nuts instead of cashews? I have a ton of pine nuts, and no cashews..
Also, would the recipe be more “cheesy” if I added nutritional yeast?
Thanks!
Jenn S.
Hi, Ashley. I honestly don’t know if the pine nuts would work or not. I have a weird allergy to pine nuts, so don’t ever use them. I know some readers have used white beans instead of cashews with success. If you give it a try, let me know. Enjoy! Oh, and yes, you can add a little nutritional yeast!
Kim E.
This is so good! I added fresh chives and tomatoes to mine – going to add some broccoli to the leftovers. I misjudged my squash and ended up with a triple batch – think I will try it on zucchini noodles and as a soup – so many possibilities!!
Jenn S.
So glad you loved it, Kim! Thank you!! Check out my Broccoli Cheese Soup – I tweaked this sauce to make it into the soup! Would be great for your leftover sauce!
AV
This was very tasty! It didn’t, however, mimic that cheesy texture like in the picture. It came out grainy. I’m not sure why. But definitely very very good!
Jenn S.
It definitely should not have been grainy. Did you soak your cashews? Did you use a high speed blender? Glad you liked the flavor, but I’d love to help you figure out what wrong texturally. Thanks, AV!
Av
I appreciate your comment back! I did soak the cashews in the water and used a ninja blender. I tried to follow the recipe exactly. When I saw it didn’t have that cheesey texture I added nutritional yeast (I hear typically that’s what makes the texture more cheesy), but it didn’t help. Is it possible I let the cashews soak too long? Lol
Jenn S.
No, soaking longer would only make the cashews softer and easier to work with. Nutritional yeast adds a cheesy flavor, but really has nothing to do with texture. You may have needed extra liquid depending on how much of that you added, but sounds like your texture was compromised before that step anyway. I’m really not all that familiar with the Ninja blender, but it’s possible that it’s just not strong enough to break everything down. If you give it a go again, I would suggest soaking the cashews even longer…you could even throw them in the boiling water with the onion and squash after the initial soaking. And then let your blender run for a lot longer…adding a little extra liquid (1 tbsp at a time) if it seems to thick. Again, I don’t know much about the Ninja, so I can’t guarantee that will make it perfect, but it should help for sure.
Av
Okay thanks for the help! I will definitely be making it again in the future and will try your suggestions 🙂
Jenn S.
Great! Fingers crossed!
Amelia
I also ended up with a more grainy than cheesy texture, luckily it still tasted good 🙂 I’ll try boiling the cashews with the veg and doing it for a while longer & then blending for a longer period. Fingers crossed!
Jenn S.
Hi, Amelia! Glad you enjoyed it. What kind of blender do you have? You may just need to blend longer, but a high speed blender (like a Vitamix or Blendtec) is a must. Thanks for your feedback!
Amelia
I used a Philips 500W blender
Jenn S.
Ok. That’s quite a bit less wattage than a Vitamix, but that doesn’t mean it can’t work. If you try again, I would soak your cashews overnight and then throw them in the water with the squash and onions. And let the blender run for quite awhile until everything is perfectly smooth. Good luck!
Sherry Jones
I have a Ninja and a Vitamix , the Vitamix creams things much better than the Ninja. However, if you have the small jars with blades that come with the ninja, they will cream much better. You may have to blend in batches.
Jenn S.
Thank you for the tips, Sherry! I think a lot of people have Ninjas so that is very helpful!
Bonnie
I made it once again cause I love it. but it was just for me this time so I halved the pasta amount . I also added carrots to the squash and onions. I’m planning to use the extra sauce on nachos. Can’t wait to try it!
Jenn S.
Love the idea of adding carrots – they add a great natural sweetness. And enjoy those nachos! Sounds like a fabulous idea! Thanks, Bonnie!
Janelle
If you sprinkle vegan parmigiana cheese over it it’s even better.
Jenn S.
Great idea. Glad you like it, Janelle!
Paige Lapen
This is a favorite in our family now, too!
Jenn S.
Thanks, Paige! So happy you all love it!