31 Best Butternut Squash Recipes to Make This Fall
Bring on the cozy.
ByKelly Vaughan
Published On
Photo by Rocky Luten
I have a complicated relationship with these butternut squash recipes. When I was 15, I made my first-ever pot of butternut squash soup from scratch. Armed with a dull chef’s knife and way too much confidence, I tried to split the squash in half—and, in the blink of an eye, sliced the tip of my finger instead. The knife didn’t stand a chance against the tough root vegetable, and neither did I.
These days, I’ve learned a few things—like how to actually cut a butternut squash without losing a finger. (My 15-year-old self would’ve loved this how-to guide.) I’ve also learned that this versatile vegetable deserves more than just soup. From cozy pastas to cheesy bakes to crisp fall salads, here are 31 of our very best butternut squash recipes to keep you warm and well-fed all season long.
One of our most popular recipes and for good reason. Blend butternut squash, white cheddar, and plenty of parmesan for the coziest (and easiest) fall pastas. Bonus: minimal cleanup since it comes together in one pot.
Emma Laperruque wowed us once again with this comforting soup recipe, which calls for butternut squash two ways. Roast one portion with yellow onions, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Boil the other with salt and garlic until just tender. Purée the lot of it into a smooth, creamy purée.
This simple pasta recipe has everything we’d want in the perfect fall pasta—butternut squash, walnuts, sage, and freshly grated nutmeg.
Equal parts elegant and comforting, this quiche layers roasted squash, crispy prosciutto, and sage into a buttery crust that never disappoints.
If you have a pressure cooker with air fryer functionality, put it to use with this apple cider-glazed chicken served with fluffy quinoa and roasted butternut squash. Simply toss the squash with olive oil, salt, and pepper before cooking it on the “Steam & Crisp” setting of your machine.
Here’s a cozy dish that packs a surprisingly spicy punch. Any winter squash works here, but we’ll always advocate for butternut since it’s delicious and readily available. First, broil it until crispy, then slowly cook it in a Dutch oven with coconut milk, harissa, coriander, and rosemary until fork-tender.
Somewhere in between a traditional Thanksgiving feast and a northern Italian specialty is this autumnal pasta recipe. The filling comprises a combination of butternut squash, ricotta, and nutty brown butter; a plate of the tortelli gets tossed with roasted Brussels sprout wedges.
Friday night pizza just got a delicious upgrade thanks to this vegetarian pizza. No meat is needed when the squash is so flavorful: Slice it thinly, then drizzle it with olive oil, maple syrup, coriander seeds, and ground cayenne. The all-white pizza includes a duo of ricotta and mozzarella cheeses, plus a little extra maple syrup on top, for good measure.
Make yourself something delicious to eat with this nourishing, cozy recipe for a butternut squash pasta laced with miso and garlic.
You know that feeling of walking outside in such frigid temperatures that you feel like your face will be permanently frozen? This soup recipe is the cure. Use any kind of squash you can find, but we especially love it with butternut squash. Sfoglia lorda—bite-sized ravioli filled with goat cheese—hop in the soup near the end of the cooking process.
You can pair butternut squash and sage with any pasta, but we love the cozy nature of pillowy gnocchi. Dollop fresh ricotta cheese on top, because why not?
Orecchiette seems like it’s always paired with sausage and broccoli rabe. While that’s certainly part of our fall dinner rotation, this recipe is a refreshing change. For starters, it’s totally vegetarian, but gets plenty of heft from the squash, kale, and sweet red onions. It comes together in just under an hour, which makes it a weeknight winner.
Does anyone really host fall harvest dinner parties outside of Stars Hollow? Probably not, but if they did, this stunning tart would be at the center of the table. It’s packed with caramelized onions, roasted butternut squash, Gruyère, and crème fraîche.
Galettes are often, though not always, sweet—pear and almond; apples and honey. But why not take advantage of colorful root vegetables like butternut squash for a savory version?
There’s no reason not to add butternut squash to a creamy, cheesy risotto. This recipe makes a lot of risotto, and you can easily scale it up for a crowd.
Upgrade your game day feast with this autumnal queso. “I find that when you blend the traditional smoky-spicy queso with some roasted butternut squash, it becomes an extra silky-smooth, sweet-salty sauce,” writes recipe developer Grant Melton.
Move aside, mushrooms—we’ll call you back in a couple of months. For right now, we’re all about utilizing this orange vegetable every which way, which means using squash in place of the usual beef tenderloin for this vegetarian version of the holiday staple.
If you’re just as torn as we are about what to serve for Thanksgiving, this dessert is the answer. It’s a cozy hybrid of two beloved treats, and fall’s finest vegetable is at the center of it all.
You can put pretty much anything on crostini and I’ll shove them in my mouth faster than Edwin Díaz’s fastballs. However, this duo might just be my new favorite topping yet.
Fettuccine Alfredo, a decidedly not Italian recipe, is one of our number-one comfort foods. But it’s incredibly rich and oftentimes, one-note. That’s why we love the combination of butternut squash and mushrooms here. They add plenty of heft for a vegetarian bite, and make it just a little more interesting.
Enjoy this for a meal on the lighter side, or serve it as a side to a cozy roast chicken for a satisfying fall dinner.
Start your morning on a savory note with these scones, which boast butternut squash purée for color and moistness. Drizzle them with a cinnamon-sugar syrup to enhance the flavor of warming spices like nutmeg, cloves, and ginger.
Butternut squash and coconut? Sign us up! In this recipe, cubes of tender squash are blitzed into a cream soup. It's then topped with homemade croutons and a spicy coconut chutney.
Ottolenghi’s simple side dish may be our favorite way to cook and serve butternut squash (but don’t tell that to the other 30 recipes on this list!)
Even when you’re crunched for time, this family-friendly, autumnal pasta recipe is totally manageable. Most of the prep time involves roasting the kale, so you have plenty of time to do other chores around the house while it cooks.
This is the most luxurious butternut squash soup we’ve ever tasted, which is all thanks to the spiced crème fraîche and nutty brown butter.
An any day, anytime side dish. The nutty, umami-rich sauce has enough might to hold its own against the seasonal root vegetables.
Saffron not only adds a delicate, slight floral flavor to this squash risotto, but it also creates a stunning yellow hue, which makes the resulting dish appear even more vibrant.
Sage and butternut squash are truly like peanut butter and jelly—you can’t really enjoy one without the other. Here, butternut squash is tossed with a sage pesto, rather than the usual basil-based version.
An uber-creamy soup that is totally dairy-free. You’re welcome.
This story was updated in October 2025 to include even more butternut squash recipes.