(Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Meat Free | Vegan Option) I’ve had the type of week where I’m craving comfort food. This recipe is one of my go-to favs when I’m feeling like I need a little food hug. Everyone I’ve ever served this dish to loves it so tuck in and enjoy this little comforting treat to celebrate Friday!

Ingredients

• 1 fresh butternut squash (peeled and chopped) OR 1 cup canned butternut squash OR canned pumpkin (I had an acorn squash hanging about so I just used that)
• Extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp Earth Balance (or other non-dairy butter replacer if you’re making this vegan, but I just used butter)
• 3/4 cup unsweetened & unflavoured almond milk
• 1 tbsp arrowroot powder or cornstarch (I just used gluten free flour)
• 6 tbsp nutritional yeast, or more to taste (you can buy at most all health food stores in London like Holland & Barrett)
• 2 tsp Dijon mustard (this is really bad, but I didn’t have this so I used wholegrain mustard instead. It wasn’t as good as using Dijon mustard, but it was still yummy!)
• ¼ – ¾ tsp garlic powder
• ½ tsp onion powder
• ½ -1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• ½ -1 tsp kosher salt (to taste) & ground black pepper, to taste
• 4 servings brown rice macaroni (or any gluten free pasta)
• Mix-ins of choice (e.g., kale, spinach, broccoli, peas, pumpkin seeds, etc)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 200C (400F). Line a casserole dish with tin foil. Mix chopped squash with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for about 40 minutes, uncovered, or until tender.
2. Prepare the sauce in a pot on the stovetop. Add Earth balance (or butter) over low-medium heat. In a bowl, whisk together milk and arrowroot powder (or cornstarch or flour) until clumps are gone. Add into pot and whisk. Stir in remaining ingredients (nutritional yeast, Dijon, garlic, lemon, Salt & Pepper) and whisk over low heat until thickened (about 5-7 minutes or so).
3. Cook your pasta according to package directions. The sauce makes enough to cover 4 servings of pasta.
4. In a blender, blend the sauce with 200g (1 cup) of roasted squash -or if using canned, simply stir 200g (1 cup) into the pot (our blender wasn’t working so I just mashed squash with a potato masher by hand, which was also fine!)
5. Add cooked, drained, and rinsed macaroni into pot, along with sauce & mix-ins. Heat and serve.

Source | Oh She Glows Butternut Squash Mac’N Cheeze