I made Ree Drummond's simple butternut-squash mac and cheese and it's my new go-to fall dinner

Tue, 10/15/2024 - 10:03

I tried making Ree Drummond's baked butternut squash macaroni and cheese.

Nathan Congleton/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty Images; Erin McDowell/Business Insider

I tried making Ree Drummond's baked butternut-squash mac and cheese.
The Pioneer Woman's recipe calls for roasted butternut squash, onions, and breadcrumbs.
I thought the recipe was very flavorful, although I tasted the onions more than the squash.

In honor of the fall season, I decided to try making one of my favorite autumnal dishes: butternut-squash mac and cheese.

Ree Drummond, also known as The Pioneer Woman, is well known for her family-friendly comfort food recipes. I decided to try her butternut-squash mac-and-cheese recipe. I anticipated that the simple recipe, which takes less than an hour to make, would be perfect for a fall or winter weeknight dinner after a long day at the office. It also only calls for a few low-cost ingredients, making it a cost-effective option for a crowd-pleasing dish.

I spent about $43 on the ingredients for the recipe, but I needed to buy some pantry staples you likely already have on hand, like butter, milk, and flour. The recipe is also intended to feed 12 people, which made it come out to less than $4 per serving if you had to buy every ingredient.

Here's how to make Drummond's butternut-squash mac and cheese, which has become one of my new go-to fall dinners.

I started by prepping my butternut squash. Instead of pre-cut cubes, which I usually buy, Drummond's recipe calls for a whole butternut squash cut in half.

pioneer woman ree drummond butternut squash macaroni and cheese — The butternut squash.
Erin McDowell/Business Insider

I found it surprisingly easy to cut the squash in half. You only need one half of the squash, so after cutting it, I set the other half aside for another day.

After cutting it in half, I removed the seeds from the hollowed-out part of the squash with a spoon.

This only took a minute but required some vigorous scraping to remove all the seeds and guts from the butternut squash.

After preheating my oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, I placed the prepped squash on a baking sheet and drizzled it with olive oil.

I then cooked it in the oven until it was fork-tender and slightly browned, according to Drummond's instructions. This took about 30 minutes.

While the squash was roasting, I started cooking the onions.

The recipe calls for two sliced yellow onions. I added them to a large, oven-safe skillet with 2 tablespoons of butter.

I cooked the onions, stirring them occasionally, until they were a deep golden brown.

ree drummond pioneer woman butternut squash macaroni and cheese — The cooked onions.
Erin McDowell/Business Insider

This took about 15 minutes but was easy enough to do. I also loved how the rich onion scent filled my kitchen — even my roommates commented on how good everything smelled. After the onions were done, I set them aside on a plate.

While the onions and the squash were cooking, I also made the macaroni.

I boiled the macaroni until it was al dente, then drained it and set it aside in the colander. The recipe calls for 12 ounces of macaroni, so I used about three-quarters of the box.

After about 30 minutes, the roasted squash was tender and ready to remove from the oven.

I let it cool slightly before I began removing the butternut squash with a fork.

I used a fork to scrape out the insides of the squash, which was easy because the squash was so soft.

After transferring the scraped-out butternut squash into a medium-sized bowl, I mashed it lightly with a fork. I found that the squash was already so tender, it didn't require much mashing to reach the desired consistency.

After the squash was done and set aside, I prepared the sauce in the same skillet I used to cook the onions.

To get started, I added 4 tablespoons of butter to the skillet and melted it over medium-high heat.

The sauce calls for 2 cups of shredded sharp cheddar cheese.

I used medium-sharp cheddar, but you can use whichever cheddar cheese you prefer. I also hand-grated my cheese, rather than buying it pre-shredded in a bag. I personally think you get a better flavor this way and it melts much better, but you can use whichever method you prefer.

Once the butter was melted, I added in the flour, cheddar cheese, and butternut squash.

I combined all the ingredients together by folding them in with a wooden spoon.

I slowly added in 2 cups of whole milk, stirring as I went.

I added the milk in bit by bit, folding the sauce together to evenly distribute all the ingredients.

Once the sauce was done, I added the cooked macaroni.

I used my wooden spoon to fold the macaroni into the sauce, making sure it was well-mixed.

Then I added in the cooked onions and stirred it together.

It took a little bit of effort to mix the onions in evenly throughout the entire skillet of mac and cheese — I found that the onions wanted to clump together in spots. However, I was able to distribute them throughout after a minute or two of folding and mixing.

I then prepped the breadcrumbs, which were supposed to be sprinkled over the top of my mac and cheese.

After melting 2 tablespoons of butter in a bowl in the microwave, I added half a cup of seasoned Panko breadcrumbs.

I sprinkled the breadcrumbs over the top of the mac and cheese and then baked it for about 20 minutes.

The finished butternut squash macaroni and cheese. — The finished butternut squash mac and cheese.
Erin McDowell/Business Insider

I baked the mac and cheese in the skillet until the edges were a deep golden brown and the breadcrumbs were toasted.

Then, it was finally time to serve my mac and cheese.

When I served the mac and cheese with a spatula, I could see the onion interspersed throughout the dish underneath the layer of crispy pasta.

I thought this was one of the most flavorful mac-and-cheese recipes I've ever made.

I've made baked mac-and-cheese recipes by celebrity chefs Ina Garten and Martha Stewart in the past, but I much preferred this recipe. I thought the onions packed a ton of flavor — although, I do believe the onions could have been almost too flavorful.

I thought that the butternut squash and cheddar cheese were both overpowered by the sauteéd onions, which cut through everything with their buttery, rich flavor. I would use less next time for more balance. However, I really enjoyed the texture of the dish, thanks to the thick, cheesy sauce and the layer of toasted breadcrumbs that added the perfect amount of crunch.

The recipe was supposed to make 12 servings. However, I don't know if it truly made that many servings. Based on what I served myself, I anticipate it would actually serve around eight people.

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I made Ree Drummond's simple butternut-squash mac and cheese and it's my new go…