This oven roasted butternut squash recipe features tender, roasted butternut squash cubes coated with warm spices and baked to sweet, caramelized perfection! Easy to make, it’s the perfect healthy side dish for everything from weeknight dinners to holiday feasts.
Why you’ll love this butternut squash recipe
I know what you’re thinking, butternut squash is too difficult to bother roasting. After all, it’s too much of a pain to peel the darn thing, but I promise this recipe is so worth the elbow grease!
By the time you’re done, you’ll have a crowd-pleasing side dish everyone around your table will love.
- Flavor – Sweet, caramelized squash cubes are given a boost of comforting flavor with warm spices perfect for fall.
- Texture – The squash becomes nice and tender in the oven, and we give the dish a bit of crunch with the addition of chopped nuts.
- Versatile – I love to serve oven roasted butternut squash as a side dish on its own, but it’s also the perfect addition to salads or grain bowls.
With minimal prep time, you can prepare this roasted butternut squash recipe in under an hour! Pair it with your favorite main courses, or enjoy it with your Thanksgiving turkey and sausage stuffing to add some extra nutrients to your holiday.
Key Ingredient Notes
- Light brown sugar enhances the natural sweetness of the squash and creates a beautiful caramelized effect. If your sugar becomes too hard, take a look at my tips to soften brown sugar before tossing it out!
- Spices – Ground cinnamon, allspice, and salt add lots of warmth. If preferred, you can substitute ¼ teaspoon of freshly grated nutmeg with a pinch of ground cloves in place of allspice.
- Unsalted butter helps the seasonings cling to the squash and creates a richer flavor.
- Butternut squash – The star of the show! You’ll need about 3 pounds of butternut squash for this recipe. One medium-sized squash is typically big enough!
- Nuts – Walnuts or pecans add a nice crunch.
How to roast butternut squash
Before you begin, preheat your oven to 400°F.
- Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and melted butter in a small bowl.
- Whisk until smooth.
- Cut both ends of the squash, and cut it in half above the round part.
- Peel the skin using a vegetable peeler.
- Cut each squash half vertically, and remove the seeds.
- Cut each half into 1-inch cubes, and transfer them to a large baking sheet.
- Pour the brown sugar mixture over the squash, mixing to coat each piece.
- Bake for about 25-30 minutes or until fork tender, stirring every 10 minutes.
- Add the chopped nuts during the last 10 minutes of baking. Add them any earlier, and they will burn!
Save the seeds
Save your butternut squash seeds to roast and eat just like you would pumpkin seeds!
Tips for Success
- Peel the squash. Butternut squash skin can be tough to chew and sometimes has a bitter taste. So, I highly recommend using a vegetable peeler to peel your squash before you roast it. If it’s too difficult to peel, poke holes all around the squash, and microwave it for about 2 minutes to help it soften.
- Use pre-cut squash. To speed up prep time, feel free to use pre-cut butternut squash instead of peeling and cutting it yourself. You can typically find it in bags in the refrigerated produce section of your local grocery store!
- Ensure even cooking. Make sure to cut your squash into equal-sized pieces, and spread them out in a single layer on the baking sheet, leaving space in between each piece. This will allow the pieces to cook evenly, preventing over or undercooking.
- Avoid burning. The exact cooking time will vary based on your oven and the size of your squash. So, be sure to keep a close eye on your oven, and remove the squash as soon as it’s tender.
Make-Ahead Tips
You have a couple of options here.
First, you can prepare the ingredients ahead of time:
- Peel and cube the squash a few days in advance, and refrigerate it in an airtight container until ready to use.
- Chop the nuts, and store them in an airtight container or sealable bag at room temperature.
Or, you can prepare the entire recipe a day in advance:
- Cook the squash slightly al dente on the first day, about 20 minutes.
- When ready to serve, add the nuts, and bake for 10-15 minutes or until heated through.
Storing Tips
- Store leftover roasted butternut squash in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- You can also freeze roasted butternut squash for up to 1 year! To do so, allow it to cool completely, and arrange the cubes in an even layer on a baking tray. Freeze for about an hour or until solid. Then, transfer the cubes to a sealable bag or freezer-safe container. Thaw in the fridge when you’re ready to serve.
- Reheat leftover squash in 30-second increments in the microwave or in the oven at 400°F for 5-10 minutes or just until warmed through.
FAQs:
Technically, you don’t have to, because the skin is edible. However, I much prefer this recipe without the skin and find that it’s much easier to remove before roasting instead of after.
If you’re keeping the skin on, you’ll want to make sure to wash and dry your squash before roasting. However, because I discard the skin, it’s not necessary. The flesh isn’t exposed to any dirt or debris before roasting!
The most common reasons for mushy oven roasted butternut squash are using an underripe squash, using too much butter, or overcooking your squash.
More Side Dishes
Roasted Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- ¼ cup (50 g) light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon all spice*
- ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1 medium about 3lbs butternut squash, cubed (or 10 cups of cubed butternut squash)
- 1 cup walnuts or pecans coarsely chopped
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).
- In a small bowl, whisk together brown sugar, cinnamon, all spice, salt and melted butter until smooth.
- To prepare a whole squash, cut both ends of the squash. Cut it in half above the round part of the squash, and peel the skin using vegetable peeler. Now cut each half vertically and remove seeds. Then cut into 1-inch cubes. Transfer the cubed squash onto a large baking sheet.
- Pour the brown sugar mixture over the squashes. Mix everything together so that all the squashes are evenly coated and spread it in one layer.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until fork tender, stirring every 10 minutes.
- Add nuts at the last 10 minutes.
⭐️ Did you make this recipe?
Please leave a review and let us know how you liked it!
Video
Tips & Notes
– You can peel and cube the squash a few days in advance and refrigerate in airtight container until ready to use.
– You can also make the entire recipe a day in advance and reheat it before serving. Cook the squash slightly al dente the first day, about 20 minutes. Then when ready to serve, add nuts and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until heated through. Storing Tips:
– Store leftover roasted butternut squash in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
– Freeze roasted butternut squash for up to 1 year! To do so, allow it to cool completely, and arrange the cubes in an even layer on a baking tray. Freeze for about an hour or until solid. Then, transfer the cubes to a sealable bag or freezer-safe container. Thaw in the fridge when you’re ready to serve.
– Reheat leftover squash in 30-second increments in the microwave or in the oven at 400°F for 5-10 minutes or just until warmed through.
Nutrition
This post was originally published on November 25th, 2013.
Can olive oil be substituted for butter?
Yes, you can.
Can I make this recipe without the nuts?
Yes, absolutely!
Highly recommend your blog to everyone. Especially this beautiful butternut squash recipe really made our day. Made this for my kid’s tonight, they loved it. The taste is lovely and delicious.
Thank you so much, Anna!!
Thank you for a beautiful butternut squash recipe. Made this tonight for my family and the kitchen smells divine. It tastes even better.
Onkar, thank you for your feedback. So glad you made and enjoyed it.
Thank-you for your quick response Shinee 🙂 I will prepare this dish ahead but what I might try is after the squash has cooled i’m going to layer with parchment paper just to make sure there is no sticking , I should also be able to reheat this way 🙂 what do you think ?
I think that should work. Have fun!
Can this be prepared the day before and reheated ? My only concern is sticking together . I am limited to time and oven space when it comes to Christmas dinner side dishes .
Hi, Melodie. Totally understand your issue. 🙂 I have reheated the leftovers before, so I think you can cook it advance. I’d undercook it a little the first day, so when you reheat it, it doesn’t get too mushy or anything. I hope this helps. Let me know how it turns out. Merry Christmas!
Hi…how many does this serve? I am using this recipe as a side for my xmas dinner – 20 ppl. Need to know how many times I need to double/triple recipe. Thanks!
Oh, I wanna say about 6-8 people as a side dish. Hope you’ll enjoy it. 🙂
This dish looks SO good! I absolutely love butternut squash, and caramelizing it like this feels so so right.
Pinned!
Yes, I love butternut squash too, and this is my favorite way to prepare it. 🙂 Thanks for the pin, Abbie!