Butternut Squash Apple Bake is a the perfect side dish for your holiday table. It is sweet, warm and full of fall flavors. The butternut squash, apple, raisins and pecans pair perfectly together in this side dish. Serve this alongside your Thanksgiving turkey!
Thanksgiving traditions in my family always involve food, holiday family recipes and gathering in the kitchen. We love sharing the classic dishes at our table but also like adding new additions each year.
This Butternut Squash Apple Bake was on our table a few years ago and I am updating the recipe and photos.
It is a winner and one that you should consider adding to your holiday table alongside this Herb Butter Turkey, Lemon Arugula Salad with Pine Nuts and these Gouda Smashed Potatoes.
If you love warm butternut squash and cooked apples this is the dish for you.
I am a big apple girl during the fall and love making all kinds of dishes using apples. Some of our favorite are these Easy Skillet Apples, Apple Pancakes, Apple Bars with Pumpkin Pie Spice Icing or this Zucchini Applesauce Bread.
The warm squash and apples are paired with sweet pecans {or you can use walnuts} and plump raisins along with a little brown sugar to sweetness things up.
It is a really great dish for the holidays and perfect to add to your festive table.
When talking about family traditions I should first give you a little background about my childhood and how our family traditions came to be.
Throughout my life my family moved from Ohio to Maine to Michigan to Illinois to Ohio and now my parents live in Tennessee.
Growing up I wasn’t a huge fan of moving as you can imagine.
I remember one time when we were living in Maine I overheard my parents talking about moving (before they had told my sisters and I).
I broke down crying and of course felt like it was the end of the world!
Looking back now I feel that moving from place to place actually had its benefits.
I am a more flexible and laid back person.
I have learned to adapt to my surroundings and make friends in new, unfamiliar places.
I had the opportunity to see many different places in the U.S. and grew to love things about each.
Most importantly my family became closer, because each time we moved we had each other to lean on and that was the one thing that always remained constant.
Traditions were very important to us and helped us feel as though, even if we were in a new place, we still had those family traditions that remained familiar and comforted us in an unfamiliar place.
Recipe Ingredients:
- Apples: This recipe uses gala apples but you can feel free to use any apple you like. If you want a more tart flavor try using granny smith apples. I peel my apples first before adding them in.
- Butternut Squash: The butternut squash is also peeled and cubed before being added. One tip to save time is to buy pre-peeled and cubed butternut squash. I have seen it at Trader Joes and Aldi before.
- Cinnamon and Brown Sugar: The cinnamon and brown sugar add that warm, fall spice we all love so much. If you are trying to avoid sugar you could use honey or maple syrup to help sweeten the dish. I would recommend stirring in 2 to 3 Tablespoons after cooking and tasting it and then adjusting with more as you see fit.
- Dried Cranberries & Raisins: I love the warm, plump dried raisins and cranberries that are paired with the apples and squash. You could also use other dried fruit like prunes or apricots.
- Pecans: The pecans are one of my favorite parts of this dish. Other nuts that would work well are walnuts or almonds. I personally prefer silvered almonds to whole almonds.
How to Make this Butternut Squash Apple Bake
Step 1: Combine ingredients: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a large bowl combine butternut squash, apples, cinnamon, vanilla and brown sugar. Mix well. Add the salt and pepper and mix well.
Step 2: Spread into Baking Dish: In a baking dish that has a lid pour the butternut squash mixture and spread evenly.
Step 3: Bake until the Squash is Soft: Place chopped butter throughout the butternut squash mixture. Cover and bake for 15 minutes. Add the raisins, cranberries and pecans and use tongs or a spoon to toss everything together, cover and place the dish back in the oven for 15 more minutes, until the butternut squash is tender and lightly browned. Remove from oven and stir. Serve warm.
How to Make in the Crockpot
Add all of the ingredients into a crockpot and cook on high for approximately 90 minutes to 2 hours or low for about 3 hours {check occasionally for the squash to become tender}
More Apple Recipes You Might Like:
- Easy Skillet Apples
- Air Fryer Apple Chips
- Sparkling Apple Pear Sangria
- Crockpot Apple Chicken Breast
- Brussels Sprouts with Apple and Goat Cheese Salad
- Crockpot Applesauce
Butternut Squash Apple Bake
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds peeled, seeded, and small cubed butternut squash {about 2 cups, cubed evenly}
- 2 gala apples, peeled, cored and diced {or a sweet apple of your choice}
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar {or use honey}
- 2 tablespoon butter, chopped into sections
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1/4 cup pecans {or walnuts}
- 1/4 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In a large bowl combine butternut squash, apples, cinnamon, vanilla and brown sugar. Mix well.
- Add the salt and pepper and mix well.
- In a baking dish that has a lid pour the butternut squash mixture and spread evenly.
- Place chopped butter throughout the butternut squash mixture. Cover and bake for 15 minutes.
- Add the raisins, cranberries and pecans and use tongs or a spoon to toss everything together, cover and place the dish back in the oven for 15 more minutes, until the butternut squash is tender and lightly browned.
- Remove from oven and stir. Serve warm.
Notes
- All ovens vary on cooking time so please check to see if the butternut squash is cooked through as you near the end of cooking time. If the squash isn’t tender to your liking cook for a few more minutes.
- You can use honey in place of the brown sugar.
- You can substitute acorn squash in this recipe for the butternut squash if you want.
- You can use Macintosh or any other baking apples instead of gala.
How much Salt and Black Pepper should be used.
I do NOT see the amounts in the recipe….
I do 1/2 teaspoon salt and an 1/8 teaspoon black pepper. Sorry I added it in. It is really up to you- if you would prefer no salt you can skip it. It is more of a personal preference. Enjoy!
Made this with walnuts and served it with a rib roast and green beans. It was delicious. Always nice to find a great, new side dish.
So glad you enjoyed it! Love the additions.
This is delicious! I used 3 cups squash and 3 Granny Smith apples. I omitted the nuts and raisins and added some dried ginger and used half as much cinnamon. I used Healthy Balance margarine and used honey instead of brown sugar. This is a wonderful dish for my AIP diet. Thank you. This is a keeper.
I love your changes! I am so glad you liked it. It is one we make often and also really enjoy!
Can you freeze this ahead of time?
I honestly have not tried to freeze this after baking it. I worry that the squash might be soggy once frozen and then thawed again. If you want to try to freeze it I suggest making sure it is fully cooled before you freeze it and then freeze it in an airtight container. When ready to use it I would thaw overnight and then slowly reheat in the oven at 300 degrees until heated through.
Julia, can I can I cook the first 15 minutes the day before then the last 15 minutes the day of when I’m going to use it?
I have not tried that but I think you could! It would help prevent it from getting mushy I think.
Tried this tonight. It was amazing! It was like eating dessert for dinner. OMG! I might just try it the next time with an oatmeal crumb topping. Paired well with our barbecued ribs.
Love the idea of the topping on it! I have to try that!
Great Fall recipe and very easy, but you need salt. Always at least a pinch of salt.
Yes you can always add a pinch of salt. 🙂
And can one substitute maple sugar for the brown sugar/honey? Has anyone tried adding some roasted beets into the mix?
You can sub in maple syrup! That adds sweetness also and works nicely. I have not tried beets but I really love that idea. Roasted beets are the best. Let men now how it goes!