A simple vegan Butternut Squash Gratin with cubes of orange-hued butternut squash coated with creamy, nutmeg-flavored coconut milk. All of this goodness is smothered under a savory breadcrumb-cheese-herb mix. Vegan, soy-free, nut-free and can be gluten-free.
Here’s a really simple but very delicious side made with one of my favorite winter squashes: a vegan Butternut Squash Gratin.
It literally takes no more than 15 minutes to pull this recipe together, especially if you buy your butternut squash already prepped and cubed from the grocery store, which I often do.
This is an incredibly easy recipe, and it can easily be made in a single pot if you have a large skillet that transfers from the stovetop to the oven, like a cast iron skillet or a hefty steel skillet. Or, if you’d like to bring this dish to the table in a nice baking dish, you can do the initial cooking in a skillet or saucepan and transfer everything to the baking dish before cooking.
When I say this is an easy dish, I mean it. You need just a handful of ingredients to make it, and you really don’t need to be an expert cook to pull it off.
Ingredients for the Butternut Squash Gratin:
- Butternut squash
- Onion
- Garlic
- Coconut milk
- Breadcrumbs (use gf for a gluten-free dish)
- Nutmeg
- Rosemary
- Parsley
- Vegan cheese, like mozzarella (optional)
- Extra virgin olive oil
Looking for more tasty vegan Thanksgiving sides?
- Scalloped Sweet Potatoes with a Crunchy Pecan Topping
- Creamy Vegan Mashed Potatoes
- Creamy Chipotle Green Beans
- Roasted Hasselback Delicata Squash
- Vegan Scalloped Hasselback Potatoes
Easy Vegan Butternut Squash Gratin Recipe:
10 ingredients | Soy-Free |Nut-Free | Can be Gluten-Free
Vegan Butternut Squash Gratin
Ingredients
- 1.5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (divided)
- 1 medium onion (finely diced)
- 4 cloves garlic (minced)
- 2 pounds butternut squash (weighed after squash has been peeled and cubed. Cut your cubes fairly small– about 1/2 an inch. You can also slice your butternut squash really thin, about 1/8th of an inch.
- 1 tsp rosemary
- 1/2 tsp nutmeg
- 13.5 oz coconut milk (full-fat, out of a can)
- 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp parsley
- 1/2 cup vegan mozzarella (optional)
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Make the breadcrumb mixture by placing the breadcrumbs with the parsley, cheeze if using, and the salt and pepper with 1/2 tbsp oil in the food processor or a bowl and mixing well.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a skillet (use an oven-proof skillet for a one-pot dish). Add the onions and garlic with some salt and pepper and saute, stirring frequently, until the onion is soft.
- Add the cubed butternut squash along with the rosemary and the nutmeg. Cook, stirring frequently, about 7-8 minutes or until the squash is quite tender. You can cover the skillet to speed this, but check frequently to ensure nothing's sticking to the bottom of the pan. Season with salt and pepper as needed.
- Prep a baking dish, if using one, by coating it with a thin layer of oil. Once the squash is cooked, ladle it out into the baking dish in an even layer.
- Pour the coconut milk evenly over the squash cubes. Then top evenly with the breadcrumb mixture.
- Bake the gratin until it is bubbling and the top is lightly golden. Serve hot or warm.
Nutrition
Substitute Butternut Squash with Kabocha Squash..MMMmmmm!