Are you intimidated by the butternut squash you see in the produce section? But intrigued at how cheap they are in the fall and winter months?!
Let me help you learn how to make butternut squash.
I’m seeing glimpses of fall all around us.
Red and orange leaves on our neighbors tree.
Cool mornings.
Acorn bits all over our yard.
Fatter squirrels.
And pumpkins and mums on the grocery store front patio.
And I’m having visions of butternut squash on our table in the next few months!
We all LOVE butternut squash…and this is my favorite way to prepare it.
Topped with a little brown sugar and butter, if you like.
How to Serve Butternut Squash
Butternut squash makes for a fantastic side dish…
Steam-baked and mashed.
Cubed and roasted.
Spiralized and sauteed.
It’s a great complement to many meals and it’s low-carb to boot.
ALSO.
This steamed and mashed version makes a great baby food…as is for an older baby, or pureed with a bit of water for younger baby!
How to Select Butternut Squash
Look for a squash with no marks on its skin, no soft spots, and it should feel “heavier than it looks.”
They range in size, so choose one that will work for your family.
Any extra squash can be used in homemade macaroni and cheese or for baking!
You can freeze cooked or raw squash, if you don’t use it all in just a single meal/recipe.
How to Bake Butternut Squash
My favorite way to cook butternut squash is to “steam-bake” it to perfection.
This requires a hefty knife and cutting board to lop off the stem, and cut it length wise. It’s almost a “machete” style cut to get it through the middle of the squash.
Take your time and be careful cutting it!
Once it is cut in half lengthwise, you can lay it flat into the base of a rectangular baking dish.
Add about 1/4-inch of water and then tightly add foil over the top.
Bake in the oven as directed below and it will “steam-bake” to perfection.
You can scoop out the seeds after cooking, then mash and flavor to taste.
Simple, nutritious and delicious!
How to Bake Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 1 large butternut squash
- water
- 2 Tbsp brown sugar optional
- 2 Tbsp butter optional
Instructions
- Cut off the stem on top of the butternut squash and then slice in half lengthwise.
- Place in 9×13-inch glass baking dish with 1/4 inch of water in the base of the dish.
- Cover tightly with foil and bake at 350 for 50-60 minutes.
- Remove from oven and let cool a few minutes. Scoop out seeds and discard. Scoop out flesh into serving bowl.
- Serve mashed butternut squash as is, or add a little brown sugar and butter to sweeten it up.
jan says
easy way to cut. I cut off the long end and cut that in half, then cut the short round part like an easy acorn squash without ridges. Hope this helps someone else who’s ‘knife-challenged.’
donna says
How do you select them and what do they taste like?
Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom says
Tastes like squash…I don’t know how else to describe the taste! A bit of brown sugar helps the taste too. You want the squash to feel heavy, to have no soft spots or marks on the skin.
Bobbie says
@Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom,
I’ve always compared it to a “grainy” sweet potato when made with brown sugar or maple syrup. Little bit more bitter than a sweet potato though
Kayla says
@donna,
You should select a squash with a long neck. This means it was vine-ripened longer. It also gives you more meat (the seeds are in the bulbous bottom, so you want the long, skinny ones!)
lauren says
I’ve been looking for a recipe to do this! I need one confirmation though, the squash goes face up in the baking dish, right?
Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom says
I put it face down.
Becky H says
I can’t wait for squash! I bake it this way too. My son loved this when I made baby food. Also, some cinnamon is good with this as well. 🙂 Thanks Erin!
Shandra says
does it taste simular to yellow crookneck summer squash?
Erin, The $5 Dinner Mom says
Not really. It has an entirely different texture…and taste too. All I can say is just give it a try!!!
Donna W says
I planted three hills of squash in my garden this year. I’ve given away literally dozens, and I still have dozens of them left. You can do anything with squash that you do with pumpkin; my husband thinks butternut squash pie is better than pumpkin pie. I found the recipe for butternut squash soup on the Internet, and that’s a hit around here also.
I remove the seeds of the squash that will fit in my microwave, and they cook fast that way.
B. Keefer says
I love acorn squash. Love the smell of it cooking in the oven. A touch of brown sugar (Splenda brown sugar sub works just as well) and butter is a must! The butter really adds flavor. Mmm. I can’t wait.
Anne Weir says
This is a much more efficient method of cooking butternut squash — or any hardshelled squash. Attempting to peel a squash is madness. Ungainly, awkward, and dangerous. Good for you to get the word out.
Will Travel by Foot says
Mmmmmm – I love butternut squash! I’ve made it the same way, but I also like to peel it and dice it up to roast in the oven. Earlier this year I made a butternut ravioli with sage cream sauce that was delicious!
ginny says
If you have a nesco you could cook a lot of butternuts at once,Clean out of skin, mash and put in freezer bags, freeze and enjoy all year round.
Amy L says
Any chance you have a yummy, healthy and semi frugal butternut squash recipe?
I REALLY like that kind in the carton but for $3 when I eat it all at once usually its just not a good option. 🙂
Kimber says
I love acorn & butternut!!!!! I slice them in half, scoop out all the seeds and rinse them. Then I will do one of 2 things. 1. stab the inside with a forks a few time and then add a dab of butter. Then add salt, pepper & garlic & herb seasoning to taste. Then bake them in a pan covered with foil for 30 or so mins depending on size until soft at about 350 degrees. 2. cut in half clean then out and stuff then with a chicken rice stuffing I make out of rice-a-roni and sausage and bake until soft about 30 to 40 mins, yummy! Oh I also cut it up and bake it in a garlic & herb mixture, yummy also!!!
I do not like the sugar in my healthy squash!!!!
Patti D says
Ok, now I would like some of these recipes!
The chicken rice stuffing, the butternut ravioli and sage sauce; the butternut pie; Any and all welcome!
My question is what is the best way to freeze them?
Treva says
I normally stab mine a few times and just throw the whole thing into the oven for 30-45 minutes. It softens up and makes it much easier to cut in half. If it still needs some bake time I will put it in a dish (I use stoneware) with water and finish it off. I, too, like mine with just brown sugar — YUMMY!!!
The best part about squash is that right now it’s 69 cents/pound at my Kroger in Indiana. Wait a bit longer and it’ll be cheaper than that. You can get a lot of yummy goodness from 1 squash and very little $$.
Diane says
I cook butternut squash in the pressure cooker when time is short; it takes about 15 minutes start to finish. On days when the sun is shining, I cook it in my solar oven; not sure about the minimum time. I leave it out there for about 6 hours. It’s very good this way. One more thing, the butternut squash that I grow in the garden will store in a cool closet all winter. Yours should too if the squash is bought fresh.
Robin says
I agree with Patti D! Please link to some of these recipes! We’re getting tired of the same old & my boy friend just had a tooth removed so squash would be absolutely perfect!
amy burger says
Does anyone know if cubed and roasted squash holds up in the freezer? I like to roast cubed squash w/ onion, olive oil , salt and pepper and then serve it with pasta. I was wondering what the texture was like if you froze it.
Leah Adamowicz says
Thanks Erin for posting this! I had butternut squash spring up in an old compost pile this year and produced 7 beautiful squash. I used a store bought one last year to make a butternut squash casserole (as a replacement for sweet potato- which is what I think it tastes like but a more creamy texture!) at the Thanksgiving Day dinner table… Well those seeds took root and I had a wonderful surprise in the garden this past spring! I didn’t want to go through the fuss of peeling dicing and mashing like last time. We will be noshing on a baked one like this for dinner tomorrow! Thanks again!
Tasha (Steps to Simple Living) says
I had never purchased butternut squash since I did not know how to cook it in a healthy way. My husband I tried your recipe tonight and LOVED it!
5point yum factor from us both. We did add a little butter but was just as good without.
Thank you so much for sharing this.
Tasha
Andrea T says
Eat the skin of baked and roasted butternt squash as well as the seeds ! Scrumptous ~~
Kathy Schell says
I found out about your cookbooks by looking on the internet on how to cook butternut squash. I would like to know how much your cookbooks are and what kinds of books do you offer, and how much are they. I collect cookbooks.
Charlotte says
I planted butternut squash by mistake this year. Enjoyed your suggestions on how to cook and store. My plants are healthy and are producing a large quanity. We’ve never eaten it be-
fore. Thanks for the tips.
Dee Johnson says
R Greene (or anyone else who can answer my question), I have wanted to do this, but was concerned I couldn’t roast the seeds if I already cooked them. Can the seeds still be roasted after the squash is cooked this way? Thanks!
Lisa says
Love butternut squash in many ways! Just this week I baked some and made a Butternut Thai Curry Soup and I pureed some to make some Butternut Squash Sandwich Bread- so good!
Brad says
Sounds great. I’m going to try it this way tonight.