Want to give your mac and cheese an extra dose of fall flavor? Cook your pasta in Pacific Foods® Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Broth for extra savoriness, along with some extra-tender roasted butternut squash, equally earthy, nutty Gruyere and Fontina cheeses, and some sharp Dijon mustard to temper the squash’s natural sweetness. Stir until smooth and wait for the compliments to roll in. Pro tip: ripe butternut squash should feel heavy for its size and make a hollow sound when you knock it with your knuckles. Most importantly, the flesh should be a deep orange color.
Melt butter in a large Dutch oven over medium. Add squash, season with kosher salt and cook, covered, stirring often, until very tender and beginning to brown, about 15 minutes. Stir in garlic and paprika and cook, stirring constantly, until garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute.
Increase heat to medium-high and stir in Pacific Foods® Organic Low Sodium Vegetable Broth, pepper, nutmeg, 2 cups of water, and season with kosher salt; bring to a boil. Stir in pasta; boil, stirring often, until pasta is al dente, about 11 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in half-and-half and Dijon mustard until smooth. Gradually add fontina and Gruyère, about 1/2 cup at a time, and stir until smooth and creamy, about 5 minutes.
Season to taste with additional salt and pepper and serve immediately with more black pepper, if desired.
For a lighter take on this dish, try swapping the half-and-half for an equal amount of whole milk.
Any semi-firm cheeses, such as cheddar, Swiss, Comté, emmentaler, Gruyère, fontina, or Monterey Jack, can work here; feel free to use whichever appeals to you. We enjoy a mixture of sharp, melty, and nutty.
If at any point the liquid evaporates before the pasta is tender, add additional warm water (1/2 cup at a time) and continue cooking. Once the cheese is added, it’s too late to add more water.
Asparagus, bell peppers, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, fennel, green beans, kale, mushrooms, onions, spinach, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, zucchini or other pasta-friendly veggies would be great additions.
This nutritional information refers to each serving of the entire recipe and not just the products used as ingredients.