Cheesy Baked Butternut Squash
Here’s one of the easiest and most flavorful autumn recipes ever: cheesy baked butternut squash. Vegan, delicious, healthy and super easy to make!
Cheesy baked butternut squash is a savory vegan main that starts with a whole squash roasted until soft and sweet, then scooped, mixed with crumbled smoked tofu, nutritional yeast and garlic, packed back into the shell and baked again until golden. It comes together with just a handful of ingredients and no dairy at all, so it’s a warm, comforting dish you can pull off on a regular weeknight. Make it when you want something hearty that leans on the natural sweetness of autumn squash for flavor.
If you love autumn as much as I do, you’re certainly familiar with this delicious snack: baked pumpkin, and more specifically baked butternut squash. Here in Romania, butternut squash is called dovleac placintar, which literally refers to the sweeter type of pumpkin used when baking pies. It’s so sweet and creamy in texture that it makes for a wonderful snack on its own, but I love turning it into a savory, cheesy meal too. Fun fact: here it’s viewed more like a fruit than a vegetable, and for good reason, because biologically speaking, butternut squash is indeed a fruit. From what I’ve noticed in the rest of the world, though, it’s more commonly used as a vegetable.
What goes into this cheesy squash
The ingredient list is short, which is part of why I keep coming back to this one. Here’s what each part is doing:
- Butternut squash is the base and the vessel. Look for one that feels heavy for its size with a firm, matte skin and no soft spots. The long neck is solid flesh, so a squash with a longer neck gives you more to work with.
- Smoked tofu, crumbled, adds protein and a savory, smoky backbone that plays against the sweet squash. Crumbling it with your fingers into rough curds gives a nicer texture than mashing it smooth.
- Nutritional yeast is what makes this dish taste cheesy without any cheese. It brings that savory, nutty, umami note that reads as “cheese” to your palate.
- Garlic, minced, sharpens everything up so the filling doesn’t go flat against all that sweetness.
- Olive oil, salt and pepper season the roasting squash and the filling.
- Grated vegan cheese is optional, for the golden, melty top. Skip it and the nutritional yeast still carries the cheesy flavor.
How to bake butternut squash so it’s soft and sweet
Cut the squash in half lengthwise and scoop out the seeds. Brush the cut sides with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and bake uncovered at 180 degrees C for 40 to 45 minutes. If the edges start to catch and burn before the flesh is done, lay a piece of aluminum foil loosely over the top. You’ll know it’s ready when a fork slides into the thickest part with no resistance and the flesh looks glossy and collapsed.
While the squash roasts, mix the crumbled smoked tofu with the nutritional yeast and minced garlic in a bowl. Once the squash is soft, scoop the pulp out of each half and stir it into the tofu mixture, then taste and adjust the salt and pepper. Spoon everything back into the squash shells, scatter the optional grated vegan cheese over the top, and return it to the oven for another 10 to 15 minutes, until the top is golden.
Why baking twice is worth it
The first bake does two jobs: it softens the flesh so it’s easy to scoop, and it concentrates the sugars, which is where all that deep, sweet flavor comes from. Roasting uncovered lets moisture escape instead of steaming the squash, so it ends up caramelized rather than watery. The second, shorter bake heats the filling through and gives the top a chance to turn golden, so you get that warm, cheesy crust over a creamy interior. It’s a little extra time in the oven, but it’s mostly hands-off.
What to serve with it
Half a stuffed squash is a full meal on its own, but it also plays well next to other autumn dishes. I like it alongside a bowl of butternut squash soup when I want to lean all the way into squash season, or with something like a cauliflower and cheese casserole for a bigger comfort-food spread. And because butternut squash is so versatile, you can also treat it as a starting point for other vegan autumn recipes throughout the season.
Make-ahead, freezing and storage
This dish keeps beautifully, which is one of my favorite things about baked squash. I sometimes like preparing a huge stack of plain baked butternut squash, then freezing it so I always have it on hand, because it freezes super well. Once frozen, it’s ready to become the base of this cheesy version or to get folded into other dishes whenever you need it.
Leftovers of the finished stuffed squash keep in the fridge for a few days in a covered container and reheat well in the oven, which keeps the top from going soggy the way a microwave can. Plain baked squash is endlessly useful once you have it: you can top salads with it for a boost of fiber and deliciousness (I always like mixing fresh and baked veggies in my salads, because they make for varied texture, which is always a plus), or lean into its sweet side by adding a generous dollop of whipped cream and cinnamon so you won’t even miss that chocolate bar at 4 in the afternoon.
Butternut squash is worth using to its full potential while it’s in season, affordable and easy to find everywhere. I hope you’ll try baking some this week. If you make this cheesy version, come back and give the recipe a star rating and leave a comment telling me how the tofu-and-nutritional-yeast filling turned out for you, and if you dream up another creative way to use baked squash, don’t hesitate to share it with me!
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Cheesy Baked Butternut Squash
Ingredients
- 1 butternut squash
- 300 g tofu smoked, crumbled
- 2 Tbsp nutritional yeast
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- Optional – grated vegan cheese
- Salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Cut the butternut squash in half length-wise and clean the seeds.
- Brush with oil, season with salt and pepper, and bake uncovered for 40-45 minutes at 180 degrees C. If the edges are starting to burn, cover with aluminum foil.
- In a bowl, mix the tofu crumbles with nutritional yeast and minced garlic.
- Scoop the pulp out of the baked butternut squash and add it to the mix.
- Mix well to combine, adjust the seasoning.
- Add the mixture back into the butternut squash, spread some grated vegan cheese on top, and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Every ingredient is plant-based: butternut squash, smoked tofu, nutritional yeast, garlic and olive oil, with optional grated vegan cheese. The cheesy flavor comes from nutritional yeast, not dairy, so there is no cheese, milk, butter or egg in the recipe.
Bake the halved, seeded squash uncovered at 180 degrees C for 40 to 45 minutes. It’s done when a fork slides into the thickest part with no resistance and the flesh looks glossy and collapsed. After stuffing, it goes back in for another 10 to 15 minutes until the top is golden.
No. You bake it in the skin, then scoop the soft pulp out of each half after roasting and mix it with the tofu filling. The shell also acts as the serving vessel, since you spoon the filling back into it for the second bake.
Nutritional yeast does most of the work. It brings a savory, nutty, umami note that reads as cheese to your palate, which is why the dish tastes cheesy even without dairy. The optional grated vegan cheese on top adds a melty, golden crust but isn’t required for the flavor.
Yes, plain baked butternut squash freezes very well. It helps to bake a big batch and freeze it so you always have it on hand, ready to become the base of this cheesy version or to add to other dishes. The finished stuffed squash is best kept in the fridge for a few days and reheated in the oven.
The recipe calls for smoked tofu, which gives the filling its savory, smoky backbone against the sweet squash. Plain firm tofu will work for texture and protein, but you’ll lose that smoky depth, so you may want to bump up the seasoning to compensate.
Delicious and super easy to make! 🙂