Savory Mashed Butternut Squash features sweet squash balanced with savory ingredients — sage, garlic, Parmesan cheese and soy sauce. Excellent side dish for Thanksgiving or other holidays.
Thanksgiving is fast approaching!
I suspect there will be many people like me cooking the holiday feast for the first time. So I’ll be rolling out some easy, delicious recipes fit for the day. Today, we start our leadup to Thanksgiving with this Savory Mashed Butternut Squash recipe.
What to serve with this recipe?
We served this mashed butternut squash along with our Herb Roasted Turkey Breast plus some mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce. And we had some peas on our plate, too, after taking the photo below!
For more side dish ideas, check out our 23 Creative Thanksgiving Sides roundup.
If you’re not serving this butternut squash for Thanksgiving, I bet it would also be a nice side for our Spoon Roast with Horseradish Cream.
Recipe Tips
Here are a few tips for making this Mashed Butternut Squash. Head down to the recipe card for all of the details.
- I used a whole butternut squash that needed to be peeled and chopped. You can get prepared squash at the store, but don’t get it too far in advance. I find that the squash doesn’t last more than a couple days after being peeled.
- We used Earth Balance spread for the butter, a good option if you are avoiding dairy. Skip the milk or use a substitute for nondairy preparation.
- If you have the squash ready ahead of other parts of the meal, add a little extra butter on top of the mashed squash. Cover the pan, and keep it warm on the stove. When ready to serve, stir in the melted butter on top of of the squash.
Wine Pairing
For a side dish like this, I would be pairing more based on the main dish and other things on the table. This squash dish is pretty mild in flavor and doesn’t need to be a big consideration in your pairing.
If you are having this with a basic turkey preparation, a Chenin Blanc is a good white wine option — a Vouvray from France is a nice choice. Pinot Noir is a solid option in red department.
PrintSavory Mashed Butternut Squash
Savory Mashed Butternut Squash features sweet squash balanced with savory ingredients — sage, garlic, Parmesan cheese and soy sauce. Excellent side dish for Thanksgiving or other holidays.
- Prep Time: 10 mins
- Cook Time: 25 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Yield: 5 servings 1x
- Category: side dish
- Method: stove top
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Ingredients
- 5 cups butternut squash, coarsely chopped
- 4 tbsp butter
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 sage leaf, minced (or ½ tsp dried sage leaf)
- dash of soy sauce
- 1 tbsp shredded Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup milk
Instructions
- Boil a large pot of water
- Prep the squash: Peel the butternut squash and chop the flesh. You can simply chop around the seeds as a short cut.
- Add the squash to the boiling water. Boil until the squash is soft, easily pierced with a fork. This will take about 25 minutes.
- Drain the squash when it has cooked to a nice soft texture. Put the drained squash back into the pan, and immediately and the butter and milk. Mash the squash and stir with a sturdy spoon.
- Stir in the remaining ingredients – add the garlic powder, sage, soy sauce, Parmesan cheese and salt. Stir to combine thoroughly. Serve immediately, or cover to keep warm on the stove as you finish other parts of the meal.
Notes
- You can use already prepared butternut squash as a shortcut in this recipe. However, don’t by the fresh peeled and chopped butternut squash too far in advance (i.e. more than a day or two in advance). I find it doesn’t keep long once peeled.
- This recipe can easily be doubled — and leftovers can be used in other tasty recipes. Stay tuned!
Keywords: butternut squash, Thanksgiving side dish recipes
Tara
Oh wow! Definitely the perfect side for Thanksgiving. I love those flavors and the minimal prep time.
★★★★★
Cooking Chat
Definitely a good year for easy recipes!
kerri
i love a good mashed butternut squash! these instructions make it so easy to follow and come up with a good result!
Cathleen
Okay, this sounds amazing! I am going to have to give this a go for Thanksgiving. Thank you so much for the recipe 🙂
★★★★★
Cooking Chat
Hope you have a good Thanksgiving!
cyndy
This will be perfect for our Thanksgiving feast. Honestly, though, these look good for every night of the week!
★★★★★
veenaazmanov
Butternut Squash sounds healthy . Love the flavors you have infused making it creamy and delicious and cheesy too. Best for a festive platter.
★★★★★