Butternut squash pasta sauce is a nice trade-off to the traditional tomato-based marinara sauce. It is thick, creamy, and perfect for a quick weeknight meal. The best part is that the sauce can be made in advance and stored in the fridge or freezer.
Serve it with your favorite pasta and top it with some Parmesan cheese for an easy dinner. You can even use it as a pizza sauce for a mushroom pizza.
We have a wide variety of sauces available on our site that will enhance your culinary creations. Some examples are our San Marzano Tomato Sauce, Red Chile Sauce which has just the right spice, and our Easy Blender Hollandaise Sauce for a fancy eggs Benedict breakfast.
This butternut squash cheese sauce deserves a spot among your go-to recipes. It is easy to make, and you can adjust the spices to your personal preferences. We made a simple butternut squash pasta for dinner and added some spicy sausage.
Here is Why This Recipe Works:
- Roasting the vegetables brings out their sweet natural flavor.
- The smooth, creamy texture is perfect as a pasta sauce, pizza sauce, or even a dip.
- It is a sauce that even your vegetarian guests can have.
- The versatile sauce easily converts to a butternut soup.
- Easy to prepare, and it can be frozen.
If you love butternut squash, try our butternut crostata and our kale and barley salad with butternut, or our butternut squash risotto.
The Ingredients:
Here is a list of the ingredients you will need for this butternut squash cheese sauce. Please scroll down to the printable recipe card for all the details.
- Butternut squash
- Onion
- Olive oil
- Garlic
- Lemon juice
- Heavy cream
- Pepper
- Butter
- Parmesan cheese
How to Make Butternut Squash Sauce:
Here is a brief overview to get an idea of what to expect with this butternut sauce recipe. Scroll down to the printable recipe card for all the details.
- Roast the vegetables until tender. Scoop the squash into a blender, add the onion, lemon juice, and garlic, then process until pureed.
- Add the butter and grated Parmesan cheese and continue processing until smooth.
- To use immediately, heat the amount needed and serve with your favorite pasta. It is great on ravioli, spaghetti, or any type of pasta.
- To store the pasta sauce, pour it into covered containers and refrigerate for 3-4 days. Or, you can place it in the freezer for up to 3 months.
This versatile butternut squash sauce is perfect for everything from traditional pasta to spiralized zucchini noodles. We love it with homemade einkorn pasta and ravioli.
With just a few simple ingredients, you can have a delicious meal ready to go in minutes.
Helpful Tips
- Roast the butternut squash until it is tender. Larger squash will need a bit longer.
- Many grocery stores sell pre-cut, cubed butternut squash. You can purchase that if you want to take a shortcut.
- If you don’t have a standard blender, you can puree the sauce in a food processor.
- If your blender or food processor has a smaller capacity, blend the pasta sauce in batches.
Some Other Recipes We Are Sure You Will Love:
Mole Sauce is a complex and flavorful Mexican sauce made from a variety of ingredients, including chiles, nuts, spices, and chocolate. It’s the perfect addition to enchiladas, casseroles, and chimichangas.
Our butterscotch Sauce is the perfect topping for your favorite desserts. Try it on chocolate stout ice cream. It’s easy to make and can be whipped up in no time.
You can do so many things with Garlic Butter Sauce. It’s so easy to make and it tastes delicious. I like to serve it with shrimp pasta or chicken. And if you want a dairy-free sauce, try our cashew pasta sauce.
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Butternut Squash Pasta Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash 3 to 4 pounds
- 1 medium onion cut in half and peeled
- 3 tablespoons olive oil divided
- 1 head of garlic top cut off
- 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1-1/2 cup heavy cream
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 4 ounces Parmesan cheese grated
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon white or black pepper
Instructions
- Heat the oven to 425°F line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut the squash in half lengthwise, and remove the seeds and stringy membrane. Brush the surface of the squash and onions with 2 tablespoons of the oil and set on the lined sheet pan.
- Drizzle the cut area of the garlic with 1 tablespoon of oil. Wrap it in foil and place it on the sheet pan. Transfer the pan to the oven. Roast for 45 to 50 minutes or until the squash is tender when pierced with a knife.
- Scoop the squash flesh into a blender. Add the roasted onion and lemon juice. Unwrap the garlic from the foil and pick out the garlic cloves. Add them to the blender with the cream and process until pureed.
- Add the butter, Parmesan cheese, salt, and pepper. Continue processing until smooth.
To Use Immediately:
- Heat the amount needed in a saucepan over medium heat, adding reserved pasta water in 1/4 cup portions, thinning the sauce until it does not spit. Serve with your favorite pasta.
- To store Pasta Sauce:
- Pour into Ball canning jars to 1-inch from the top. Cover and refrigerate for 3-4 days. Or cover and place in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Notes
Recipe Variations:
Change the flavor up a bit by adding herbs and spices. Here are a few suggestions to play with.- Cumin powder
- Achiote spice rub
- Black Magic Cajun blend
- Umami seasoning
- Fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, and sage are terrific with butternut squash)
