Hey look!  Another monthly post I worked up for you!

Pinterest is a fun social site that allows you to ‘pin’ images of things you like on a virtual pin board that links your right back to the original source.  It’s much faster than copying and pasting images in to files to save and easier to keep track of than bookmarking a bunch of your favorite sites and pages just to be overwhelmed by the list later.  I’ve been on it for about a year but for all the great looking foods I pin, I’ve never tried any of them.  Well, that’s all about to change.

The first recipe that caught my eye for this project was Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese.  We still have a box of squash hanging around and thought this would be a great way to use some of it up, and it’s pasta and cheese, you can’t go wrong.  I used their recipe almost to the T.  I’ll let you know where I changed it up.  One thing I wanted to call out though, is their servings calculator.  If you want to make this as a main dish, add a serving or two.  We ended up needing some extras + a big piece of tart to fill up.

First up, measuring the pasta.  I used bowtie pasta because it’s what we had on hand and, well, it’s fancy.  Once it’s cooked, drain and set aside.

In a separate pan I melted the butter, then added some flour and milk to make a roux base for the sauce.

Once that was all mixed together, I added in provolone cheese, cream cheese, squash and a few spices.  Their recipe called for Monterey Jack but I’ve been wanting to finish up my provolone.  I bet you could use cheddar in here too if you wanted.

Once your cheese-y sauce is all melted and gooey, add in your cooked pasta and mix it just to combine.

That’s it, you’re done.  It goes together really quickly.  I should say though, I had some leftover squash in the fridge from making some the night before.  If you don’t have any prepared it might take you a bit more time if you can’t find it already pureed in the grocery store.

The pasta was pretty good, but like I said, I wanted a little bit more.  It’s a great dish for a cold night staying it, very much a comfort food.

Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
From TastyKitchen.com
By Meredith of {in sock monkey slippers}

Ingredients: Based on 4 servings

2 cups Small Pasta (Shells, Elbow Or Piccolini)
1 Tablespoon Butter
1 Tablespoon Flour
¾ cups Milk
½ cups Butternut Squash Puree
1-½ cup Monterey Jack Cheese
2 Tablespoons Cream Cheese
½ teaspoons Salt
⅛ teaspoons Pepper
⅛ teaspoons Paprika

1.  Bring a pot of water to boil for the pasta. Once boiling, add pasta and cook until pasta is tender (about 7 to 10 minutes). Strain and set aside.

2.  Melt butter over medium low heat in a saucepan and add the flour. Whisk and cook for 2 minutes. It will resemble a paste.

3.  Slowly add milk. Whisk until combined. Next add everything thing else. Stir until combined.

4.  Add sauce to the pasta and stir!

Note: If you can’t find butternut squash puree, simply cut a butternut squash in half lengthwise. Scoop out seeds and discard. Place face down on a oven safe dish. Roast in the oven for 50 minutes at 400°. Allow to cool. Scoop the “meat” from the skin and place in a food processor or blender. Pulse until smooth.