Dairy Free Lobster Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
This Dairy Free Lobster Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese is the ultimate comfort food made healthier! The sauce is made from a combination of roasted butternut squash, nutritional yeast, cashews, and spices. This is also gluten free!
I think Mac and cheese might be the # 1 food I miss the most when I am avoiding gluten and dairy. It can be tricky to re-create a cheese sauce that actually tastes like cheese! Butternut squash can be a great addition to any dairy free cheese sauce. It not only gives it that glorious orange color, but adds in some fiber and vitamins A, C, and E!
What You Need to Make This Dairy Free Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
You only need a few simple ingredients to make this dish!
- 8 oz fresh lobster meat – I get this from ButcherBox! It comes uncooked, which is why we pan sear it real quick. You can also omit the lobster for a vegan Mac and cheese! Or add chicken or another protein of choice.
- Ghee (can also sub olive oil or vegan butter)
- 1 package Jovial Foods Gluten Free Elbows – it’s a 12 oz package. Please keep this in mind if you use a different type of pasta (most are 16 oz) – there will only be enough cheese sauce for 12 oz!
- Cubed butternut squash
- Raw, unsalted cashews
- minced garlic
- Dijon mustard
- Apple cider vinegar
- Onion powder
- Chicken broth
- Pork panko (can also use gluten free Panko, crushed Siete chips or Simple Mills almond flour crackers)
How to Make This Dairy Free Lobster Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
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First, thaw your lobster meat if it was frozen. Remove it from the packaging and place on a plate in the refrigerator overnight. Alternatively, you can place it in a bowl of cool water while it thaws.
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Preheat your oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with parchement paper.
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Heat 1 tbsp ghee or olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the lobster meat and a pinch of salt and saute for 4-5 minutes until it’s red and cooked through (no longer pink/opaque). Chop it up into bite-sized pieces. Set the cooked meat aside in the fridge while you prepare everything else.
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Lay the butternut squash cubes out on the baking sheet and drizzle with the tbsp of olive oil. Toss to coat. Bake for 30 minutes.
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Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta and cook it according to the package directions.
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When the butternut squash is done cooking, add it to a high speed blender along with the cashews, garlic, nutritional yeast, dijon mustard, ACV, onion powder, salt, and chicken broth. Blend on high speed for 1-2 minutes, or until the sauce is very smooth and creamy. Reduce the oven temperature to 350.
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Drain your pasta and add it to a bowl along with the cheese sauce and lobster chunks, reserving 1/4 cup of lobster chunks to add on top, if desired. Gently mix it all together, then pour it into a 2-3 qt baking dish (mine was 7 x 10 inches). Top with the pork panko (or topping of choice), then bake the mac and cheese for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
If you try this Dairy Free Lobster Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese, make sure to tag me on Instagram @maryswholelife so I can see your creations!
Looking for some other delicious dairy free pasta recipes? Check these out:
Sausage, Fennel & Mushroom Pasta
Happy cooking!
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Dairy Free Lobster Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp ghee, can sub more olive oil or vegan butter
- 8 oz fresh (or frozen) lobster meat, I got mine from Butcher Box
- 1 package Jovial Foods Gluten Free Elbows, or 12 oz noodles of choice
- 2 cups cubed butternut squash
- ½ cup cashews
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp dijon mustard
- 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ¾ tsp sea salt
- 1 â…“ cups chicken broth
- ¾ cup Pork Panko, or gluten free panko, crushed up Siete chips or Simple Mills crackers
Instructions
- First, thaw your lobster meat if it was frozen. Remove it from the packaging and place on a plate in the refrigerator overnight. Alternatively, you can place it in a bowl of cool water while it thaws.
- Preheat your oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with parchement paper.
- Heat 1 tbsp ghee or olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the lobster meat and a pinch of salt and saute for 4-5 minutes until it's red and cooked through (no longer pink/opaque). Chop it up into bite-sized pieces. Set the cooked meat aside in the fridge while you prepare everything else.
- Lay the butternut squash cubes out on the baking sheet and drizzle with the tbsp of olive oil. Toss to coat. Bake for 30 minutes.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta and cook it according to the package directions.
- When the butternut squash is done cooking, add it to a high speed blender along with the cashews, garlic, nutritional yeast, dijon mustard, ACV, onion powder, salt, and chicken broth. Blend on high speed for 1-2 minutes, or until the sauce is very smooth and creamy. Reduce the oven temperature to 350.
- Drain your pasta and add it to a bowl along with the cheese sauce and lobster chunks, reserving 1/4 cup of lobster chunks to add on top, if desired. Gently mix it all together, then pour it into a 2-3 qt baking dish (mine was 7 x 10 inches). Top with the pork panko (or topping of choice), then bake the mac and cheese for 20 minutes. Enjoy!
5 Comments on “Dairy Free Lobster Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese”
Can you leave out lobster? Â Would the other ingredient amounts remain the same if you did not include lobster?
Absolutely – everything else stays the same!
Unbelievably good! I’ve never had butternut squash mac n cheese and haven’t had mac n cheese since I went dairy free 8 years ago…this was soooo good! The lobster takes it to a whole new level.
The only changes I made were to use soy milk for the chicken broth and skip the cashews because I have a nut allergy. I also added 1 tsp ground sage, 1 tsp fresh chopped sage leaves, and 2 tbsp fresh chopped chives, and 1/2 chopped onion. I cooked the garlic and onion in olive oil before adding it with all the ingredients. And I didn’t add a topping or bake it.
thanks so much for this recipe!!!
wondering if you have to use cashews because I am allergic to tree nuts and this looks so delicious!?
I didn’t use them and it turned out awesome! I would add something else to add creaminess, like soy or coconut milk.