Butternut Squash + Brussels Sprouts Mac n’ Cheese with Buttery Bacon Ritz Crackers.
{This post is sponsored by DeLallo Foods.}
I just feel like this is appropriate Sunday food.
Or appropriate any day food. I mean, there is cheese, pasta and bacon. What could not be delicious and everyday about that?
For some reason, I have really been wanting to make mac and cheese for like forever now. I think maybe because it is autumn, and our autumn weather tends to be more like winter weather. Which means mac and cheese should probably be on the menu at least once a week from now until spring. I do have to say though, this last week was pretty beautiful. Monday it snowed… and snowed hard, but the rest of the week was full on sunshine and decent temps during the day.
This was really good since there was a lot of stuff happening down at the barn this week. I now have floors!! Hooray!! I decided on colored concrete floors… I know it sounds odd, but I promise it’s all good. I have been taking pictures, but I am waiting to do one big post, so everything doesn’t look so well um, scary.
And you guys, here is the thing about this barn. We have run into a lot of bumps along the way, but things are finally moving along and I have to say that my family has been such a huge part of actually building this barn. Mom’s still kicking ass as the BIG GC (general contractor) and she has had my brother Kai, his friend Blake (who really is like a member of this family because he chooses to live here and not at his own home for I’d day 85% of the year) and my dad down there working almost everyday. On Thursday night, they where all down there till almost 11:00 working. My dad gets off work at three, so that is when they started and they literally didn’t stop for the next eight hours. SO incredibly thankful for those guys right now.
I felt so guilty though. I mean, all this work for me? What the heck did I do to deserve that? Granted Kai and Blake were told they must help, and Kai did get his English paper practically written by mom in return, but still, I was feeling like I really needed to make everyone some good food. So I decided now was the time to make everyone’s favorite. BUT please, don’t anyone tell the boys that they ate squash. I of course left half of the mac and cheese without any brussels sprouts, but the squash they unknowingly ate… and loved. It’s the cheese, pasta and um most definitely the bacon that they fell so hard for.
Actually, it really may have just been the bacon, they stinkin’ love bacon. Boys.
Oh, and if you are wondering why I have got my family down at the barn working and not paid workers it’s because workers are so not cheap (and OMG, neither is this barn, who knew? clearly not us.) and SO not reliable. Yes, we have workers for the big jobs, but the little crap jobs (we may call them another word) go to Kai or Dad or even Blake. Gotta save money were you can!
Anwhooo, this Mac n’ Cheese with Buttery Bacon Ritz Crackers, it’s obviously delicious… but wait it is semi healthy for us too!!
Yes, there is bacon, butter and cheese, and I know those are not health foods, but there is also a whole four cups of pureed butternut squash, half a pound of brussels spouts and a whole lot of my very favorite whole wheat pasta.
I of course used DeLallo whole wheat pasta, and you guys, my family did not even notice one bit that this was whole wheat. Not even the picky boys. I have to say that this may be one of the healthiest meals those boys eat. I know that’s crazy, but they are some picky boys! Honestly, this pasta is one of my favorites for family meals, especially knowing I am squeezing in some whole wheat goodness.
Ok and the buttery, crunchy bacon topping? That is the best. No seriously the best.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Butternut Squash + Charred Brussels Mac and Cheese with Buttery Bacon Ritz Crackers.
By halfbakedharvest
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Keyword: mac and cheese
There is cheese, pasta and bacon. What could not be delicious and everyday about that?
Ingredients
- 4 cups butternut squash peeled and cut into small cubes
- 3 cups brussels sprouts sliced thin (into shreds)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar
- pinch of salt and pepper
- 1 pound of your favorite short cut pasta
- 6 slices thick cut bacon chopped
- 1 1/2 cups crushed Ritz crackers about 1 sleeve
- 1/4 cup flour
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 3 cups warm milk I used 2%
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 1/2 cups sharp white cheddar cheese shredded
- 1 cup fontina cheese shredded (add an extra 1/4 cup...if you want!)
- 4 ounces blue cheese crumbled (or 1 cup more fontina or cheddar)
- 1/4 teaspoon mustard powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon salt + 1/2 teaspoon pepper
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
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Place the butternut squash on a roasting pan and toss with 1 tablespoon olive oil + a pinch of salt and pepper. Place the brussels sprouts on a separate sheet pan and toss with tablespoon olive oil, the brown sugar + a pinch of salt. Roast for both for 25-30 minutes, tossing once or twice during cooking. I removed my brussels before my squash because they cook faster.
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Reduce the oven temp to 350 degrees F. Set the brussels sprout aside and add the hot squash to a blender or food processor. Add 1/4 water and puree until smooth and creamy.
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Spray a baking dish with nonstick spray.
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Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil the pasta until al-dente. You want it to have a bit of bite. It will finish cooking in the oven. Drain well.
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While the pasta boils, add the bacon to a medium-large size pot. Fry the bacon until crisp, remove and drain on paper towels. To the hot bacon grease, add in the crushed Ritz crackers and toss to coat.
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Toast the crumbs for 3-5 minutes, stirring frequently to avoid burning. Once the crumbs are lightly toasted remove form the heat and set aside.
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In the same pot you fried the bacon, melt the 4 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Whisk in the flour. Reduce the heat to medium-low and let cook/bubble for 1 minute, stirring once or twice to avoid burning. Gradually whisk in the milk and heavy cream, raise the heat up to medium-high. Bring the mixture to a boil, whisking frequently until the sauce has thickened, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in all of the cheese, mustard powder, cayenne, salt and pepper. Stir until the cheese and butternut squash puree until the cheese is fully melted. Stir in the pasta + charred brussels sprouts. Transfer to the prepared baking dish or if using cast iron, bake right in the same pot.
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Evenly sprinkle on the toasted cracker crumbs + bacon and place the baking dish on a baking
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sheet.
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Bake for 20 minutes or until the crumbs are golden brown and the sauce is bubbling.
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Remove from the oven and let site five minutes (yeah, right). Dig in!!
And if you eat this all yourself… I totally understand.
Brussels sprouts, bacon & Ritz crackers? There’s a winning combination! Looks amazing! Beautiful photos once again!
Thanks Annie!
This looks so good! And wow, you made two boys eat Brussels sprouts? Great job 😀 I was so proud when I once managed to get two teens to eat sauerkraut… But really, I think it was the bacon (and the cheese) too 😀
Thanks Nora! But I am sad to say that the boys did not eat the brussels. I left half of the mac and cheese without them…there is no way I could get them to eat brussels. 🙁
G00d Morning. What size of casserole or CI pot did you cook the final product in? thanks.
Hey Leslie!
A 9×14 inch casserole or slightly smaller oval dish works great. You could also use a 12 inch cast iron skillet, 5 quart dutch oven or brasier. Let me know if you have anymore questions. Hope you enjoy the pasta!
You have made many wonderful meals for those young men and their friends-MANY. And this is what caring families do. And you will always be your parents little girl no matter how old you get.
All of this just shows there is a lot of love in your family (and some friendly fighting words at times too–lol–I would imagine!)
Mac and cheese I love but the doctor told me to love it less but since you have so many health ingredients I bet I could make this and leave out the cream.
Have a great Sunday.
Awe, thank you for such a sweet comment. Yes, we are a close family and yes, we can surely put out the fighting words at times too! Ha!
I sometimes make this with only 2% milk and it works great. You could also use coconut milk to make it creamier and reduce the cheese a bit too. Just make it work for your needs! Thanks again Nancy! 🙂
It IS such appropriate Sunday food. I’m jealous of your family- they get to eat all these amazing recipes all the time!
Haha! Thanks Sarah! Hope you had a great Sunday!
As I am going to house sit for my parents and watch/cook for my two teenage brothers for the next week, I would say this recipe is coming at the perfect time! I know I’ll be relying heavily on pasta and bacon, so it’s nice that there are some “secret veggies” too!
That sounds fun!! Hope you guys all love this mac and cheese! 🙂
Can never pass up mac and cheese – never! This looks delish!
Same goes over here! 🙂
Thanks Kathy and I hope you had a great weekend!
Sounds wonderful! Where did you mix in the butternut squash puree?
Thanks so much! You want to mix in the squash puree with the cheeses. I fixed the recipe, thanks for letting me know it was not in there.
These look amazing! And right up my husband’s alley. I will definitely be making them for him! YUM!
Thanks so much, Rebecca! Hope you all love this recipe!
This is so Sunday food and that Ritz topping is genius!
Thank you so much! Hope you had a great Sunday!
Paying your family and friends with food is just as good as money anyways! I would eat this day in and day out if I were to help ya out…
I could not agree more. Food is everything! 🙂
Thanks Meg and I hope you had a great Sunday!
My mouth is watering. I love everything in this. Gimme all the squash and Brussels!
Thank Bri! Hope you had a great Sunday!
I am salivating! Love the rich brussels sprouts and butternut squash combo!
Thank you!
SO. MUCH. YES.
P.S. Glad to hear the barn is getting there! Can’t wait to see pics!
Thank you so much, Stephanie!! I have been horrible with pictures, but getting better as more is happening! 🙂
I must have this in my life/belly. You also happened to use my favorite shape of pasta. It’s just so fun.
Thanks Erin! And isn’t the DeLallo pasta the cutest? I love it!
One of the greatest mac and cheese dishes I’ve ever seen Tieghan, WOW!!
Thanks Matt!
These look like the greatest rice Mac and Cheese treats ever, incredible!
This looks absolutely wonderful, love that bacon Ritz topping!!!
Woahhh woah this looks amazing. All of those flavors! My bf and I are moving into our first apt next weekend and this will definitely be the first meal we make in our new kitchen 🙂
LOVE the sprouts and squash combo plus I’d never pass up mac n cheese! This looks amazing! And your pictures are gorgeous as always.
This has to be the most amazing recipe on my feed all this week. I just stopped short and saved right away when I saw this. Huzzah for wheat pasta and buttery cracker goodness!
Tieghan this is like the best looking mac and cheese ever!!
This would totally get me to eat Brussel Sprouts…
Reminds me of the BEST recipe you ever posted for nachos with butternut squash and Brussels sprouts!
I made this last week, and holy smokes. I would live in this dish if I could. Clearly I am not as efficient as you are in the kitchen because the whole thing took me like 4 hours (perhaps because my kitchen is so tiny), but since it fed my husband and me for a week, I was more than happy to put in the time. In fact, I had enough ingredients left over that I’m contemplating making it again tomorrow. I did add some roasted garlic and onions to mine because, well, we’re a little addicted around here. Even though I ate this dish all week, I really wish I could have another bowl right now. I may or may not be your newest super fan.
4 hours!! Oh my gosh. Whoa! I hope it was just a slow moving recipe for you and not difficult. I am so sorry, it is not supposed to take that long, but everybody cooks at their own pace.
So happy you love the recipe though. THANK YOU!
PS LOVE the roasted garlic + onions. That’s the best! 🙂
Sister…this dish was AH-MAZING!!!! We cooked up a batch for Thanksgiving and I seriously cannot eat another Mac & Cheese ever again because they will all be inferior to this mac and cheese. You changed my life with this dish. Holy amazingness!! THANKS!!
SO HAPPY you loved this! THANKS!
Made this last night and loved the result. One thing about how it’s written:
At one point (just when starting the roux) you say “melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter ” – but I just double-checked and butter is not in the ingredient list, nor have you mentioned it previously in the recipe, so it can’t be “remaining”. This was not a problem for me, I can adjust things as I go and read between the lines of the recipe, but someone else might end up confused.
Delicious, though, excellent flavors! Thank you!
Thank you! I will fix these mistakes!
I made this recipe over the weekend, a bit with a few changes, and it was amazing. I halfed the recipe and added onion and substituted whole wheat bread crumbs instead of ritz crackers. In the ingredients list you say 1/4 tsp nutmeg, but in the instructions you never say to add it. I didn’t add nutmeg, but it would make the dish more “wintery”.
Good morning,
Quick question, can this be made ahead of time and reheated. I don’t want to risk it turning out dry.
Thank in advance,
Kathy.
Hey Kathy, making this ahead of time is fine. I do it all the time. Hope you love this!
Made this last night and my husband totally wants to have it again tonight! It was so delicious and perfect for the first cold weekend of September, here in Ottawa. Thanks!
P.S., Made it gluten-free!
Hey Tieghan, I’d like to make this for a dinner party. I don’t have bleu cheese but I have feta – do you think that’d be too deviant?
Hi! I think feta will be fine. A little different, but still delish!