Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese

I have a confession to make: I am terrible at making cheese sauces.

They always clump up or burn or are too watery, but I love mac and

cheese, so I keep trying. I decided to make butternut squash mac and

cheese, and reflexively just started cooking without a recipe.

Somehow it turned out great! I didn’t measure anything, so all

measurements are approximate.

Ingredients

2 tbs butter

2 cloves garlic

2 sprigs fresh sage

2 tbs flour

1 cup milk

1 cup cheese, grated

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 cup cooked, mashed butternut squash

1/2 lb pasta

Salt

Cook your pasta as you make the sauce.

The trick to a good cheese sauce is a roux. A roux is cooked flour and butter that thickens soups, sauces

and much more. My favorite trick for a really good tasting roux is to put whole fresh herbs into the butter

before adding the flour to allow the flavor to come out of the herb and into the butter. Sage is a really

good one to pair with butternut squash.

Melt the butter in a saucepan and add your herbs and garlic. Cook on low heat stirring frequently.

Remove the herbs once the butter is fragrant and add flour. Continue to cook on low heat for 1-2

minutes, stirring frequently. This is where I often have the heat on too high and burn my roux. Add your

milk. Turn the heat up a touch and bring to a really low simmer. Continue stirring. Allow the milk to

simmer until you notice the sauce begin to thicken. Take the pot off the heat and add the cheese, pepper

and nutmeg. Stir until smooth. Add heated butternut squash and stir until smooth.

Put the sauce on the pasta and enjoy!