Today, we're going to show you how to make a vegan creamy roasted butternut squash pasta sauce that is both gluten-free and absolutely delicious. Trust us - once you try this butternut squash sauce recipe, you'll never return to plain old spaghetti again!

We love butternut squash, it is widely used in Argentinean cuisine and while living in Mexico for years it was challenging to get our hands around a nice baby butternut squash.
Thankfully that's not the case here in Italy, so we have been able to enjoy making many of our staple butternut squash recipes and enjoy its slightly sweet flavor in dishes varying from simple soups and roasted butternut squash to fill ravioli, or making butternut squash risotto.
This creamy butternut squash pasta is perfect for a chilly fall day, or you can also enjoy it during summertime in its cold pasta salad version. Plus, it's vegan and gluten-free, so everyone can enjoy it!
This creamy pasta was inspired by my carrot tops pesto pasta salad on this site and pairs well with these healthy roasted Brussels sprouts or green beans with toasted almonds.
Ingredients
To make this vegan butternut squash macaroni and cheese you need a couple of vegan kitchen staples plus veggies.
- butternut squash
- garlic
- fresh thyme
- vegan butter
- leek
- raw cashews
- nutritional yeast
- lemon juice
- bow tie pasta
- frozen green peas
Optional: nutmeg
See the recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Roast the butternut squash dice with garlic cloves on parchment paper and bake in a pre-heated oven
smash the roasted squash, and reserve the puréed squash
sauté sliced leeks; meanwhile, cook pasta until al dente
place all ingredients into a high-speed blender
Stir in the green peas, and top with the pasta and the creamy sauce.
Season with a pinch of sea salt and freshly grated nutmeg.
Serve with freshly ground black pepper and vegan parmesan cheese, we use our vegan 5 minutes parmesan.
Hint: If you find it too thick, add some of the reserved pasta water to help coat the pasta.
Substitutions
This creamy butternut squash pasta recipe is a quite versatile dish to make, just pay attention to the proportions. See some of the common replacements that we have tried.
- Butternut squash - instead of a baby butternut squash to make the creamy sauce you can also your favorite winter squash, use pumpkin, sugar pumpkin, kabocha squash, or acorn squash.
- Leeks - use shallots, yellow or white onion. You can also use the white bottoms of spring onions.
- Lemon juice - you can use lime or a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar.
- Cashews - although we strongly recommend using cashews you could achieve a similar result using hulled almonds.
- Thyme - rosemary makes an equally yummy pasta dish. We also like using fresh basil or fried crispy sage.
- Frozen peas - you could use canned peas, just add the drained peas right before serving, instead of exposing them to heat. You can also skip them, although we think they add a very nice texture and color to the dish.
- Gluten-free - simply use your favorite short gluten-free pasta. Penne, rigatoni, macaroni, fusilli, or elbow pasta work well.
- Nutritional yeast - replace nutritional yeast with your favorite vegan parmesan cheese.
- Vegan butter - you can use olive oil instead. To make butternut squash pasta vegan, the trick is to use good quality vegan butter, go for the earth balance if you want a homemade version, love this vegan butter recipe.
Variations
- Spicy - add red pepper flakes while cooking to imbue heat into the dish.
- Herbs - to add a more accentuated fall flavor use crispy fried sage leaves instead of thyme.
- Pasta - to make vegan butternut squash macaroni and cheese, switch the pasta selection to macaroni (elbow pasta).
Instead of using roasted squash you could simply steam or boil the squash, and add a couple of drops of smoked paprika to make up for the umami flavor.
Equipment
A blender is essential to make the roast butternut squash pasta sauce, creamy. Use a high-speed blender or a good-quality food processor.
Try using a large baking sheet, so the butternut squash dice roast well.
Storage
Store in an airtight container. Good for 1-2 days. These ingredients do/don't stand up well to freezing.
How to serve
Serve this creamy butternut squash pasta with roasted vegetables or steamed veggies.
More vegan pasta recipes
If you like this butternut squash pasta recipe, I am sure you would also love these house-favorites pasta dishes.
We love pistachios and this Pistachio pesto pasta salad is so satisfying, elegant, and easy to make that will have your guest asking for the recipe immediately!
Do you love carrots, but don't know what to do with those carrot greens? Make a Carrot tops cold pasta salad and brings it to your next potluck party!
Have the Easy vegan puttanesca sauce, a traditionally vegan Italian recipe, that is put together in 15 minutes with a base of capers and black olives, with a sharp and captivating flavor!
Recipe
Creamy Roast Butternut Squash Pasta | Vegan
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 cup butternut squash puree about ½ small butternut squash, diced or cut into ½ inch slices
- 3 garlic cloves unpeeled
- 4 fresh thyme sprigs
- 2 tablespoons vegan butter or olive oil
- 1 cup leek thinly sliced (½ cup), 3 oz
- ½ cup raw cashews
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- ½ lemon juiced
- 12 ounces gluten-free bow tie pasta
- ½ cup frozen green peas
- 1 cup pasta water
- ½ teaspoon sea salt plus extra to roast the butternut squash
Optional
- pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 400 °F (200 °C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Remove green peas from the freezer and measure. Let thaw.
- Add vegan butter and thyme sprigs, then sprinkle with salt and place the butternut squash dice with parchment paper on the baking sheet.
- If using a garlic head, chop the top, leaving the tips of the garlic exposed. Wrap the garlic head (or cloves) in aluminum foil with a tablespoon of vegan butter, plus a pinch of salt. Place it in a lined baking dish.
- Roast for 30 minutes or until the butternut squash is soft.
- Meanwhile, sauteé the sliced leeks on medium heat with a tablespoon of vegan butter and a thyme sprig. Let the butter be infused. Remove from heat.
- Continue by cooking the pasta according to package directions in a pot of salted boiling water, reserving one cup of the hot pasta water to blend it with the rest of the ingredients.
- Scoop one cup of the butternut squash flesh, and mash it with the garlic peeled cloves. You can also add them directly into the blender with the cooked leeks, pasta water, raw cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, the thyme leaves (removed from stems) and blend until creamy adding more pasta water if needed.
- Drain the bow tie pasta and return it to the same pot. Stir in the green peas, and top with the pasta and the butternut squash sauce. If you find it too thick, add some of the reserved pasta water to help coat the pasta—season with a pinch of sea salt and freshly grated nutmeg.
Video
Nutrition Facts
Food safety
We sometimes take for a granted that we have years (or decades) of cooking experience, that the average visitor may not. Add to, or remove from, the list below with health and safety tips.
- Cook to a minimum temperature of 165 °F (74 °C)
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with a high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist's advice. See our full Nutritional Disclosure here.
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Jacqueline Meldrum
That looks heavenly. I am definitely adding it to my meal plan.
Sara Welch
This was such a rich and creamy dish that does not disappoint! My kind of comfort food, indeed!
Gus
Thank you for trying our Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, Sara; I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it! This dish is definitely a favorite among our readers.
kushigalu
One of my favorite pasta recipes. SO delicious. Thanks for sharing.
Suja MD
I love how versatile this recipe is! It's a perfect fit for my family! So delicious!
Emily
I made this as a cold pasta salad for a picnic and everyone loved it. It's a bonus that it's gluten-free! So good. I'm looking forward to making it over the fall and winter, too.
Gus
Thank you for trying our recipe, Emily! I'm glad to hear that you and your friends enjoyed it. Autumn and winter are great times of year to make this dish. The flavors of the season really shine through.
Tara
This pasta looks absolutely amazing! I love that creamy texture and how easily the flavors come together.