‘The Pioneer Woman’: Ree Drummond’s Butternut Squash Pasta Casserole Is the Perfect Hearty Fall Dinner
Ree Drummond loves a good casserole and hee delicious butternut squash pasta casserole is a hearty meal that takes just 15 minutes to prep. The Pioneer Woman star pointed out how this is a great fall meal but it can be made year-round, too!
Ree Drummond’s casserole is an easy ‘fall-friendly recipe’
Drummond demonstrated how to make the delicious casserole on an episode of The Pioneer Woman. “A butternut squash pasta casserole — it is so hearty and delicious,” she said as she placed a bag of frozen squash in a pot. “To keep things easy, I’m adding a bag of butternut squash from the freezer. You can totally use fresh instead.”
She added chicken broth, salt, and pepper to the pot and turned the heat to high. “This is a very fall-friendly recipe,” Drummond explained. “But since you can buy butternut squash in the freezer section of the grocery store year-round, you can totally make this whenever you want.”
The Pioneer Woman star cooked the squash for 5 minutes and, once it was tender, used an immersion blender to puree it. “You can puree it as much or as little as you want to,” she explained. “You can make it a totally smooth puree or it can be sort of a chunky puree.”
“I like things with some texture,” she said. Drummond said chunks of the squash “make the casserole more interesting.”
She assembes the casserole quickly
Drummond’s casserole comes together quickly. First, she placed cooked penne pasta in a casserole dish, then poured the pureed butternut squash liquid over. The Food Network host stirred in roasted red peppers, frozen peas, and goat cheese. “It kind of combines with the butternut squash and, oh my gosh, the texture and the consistency of this casserole is amazing,” she pointed out.
She shared one surprising ingredient she adds to the casserole. “Now this is a really cool little ingredient to add,” Drummond teased. “I grated cauliflower, so instead of using like a breadcrumb or something, I’m doing cauliflower and that makes it more veggie-forward, more healthy.”
Drummond topped the pasta dish with salt, pepper, mozzarella cheese, parmesan cheese, and parsley. She baked it at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 to 45 minutes.
“I love this casserole,” she said. “And I love casseroles that you can assemble right in the pan. I don’t have a whole bunch of different bowls that I’m mixing in.” After cooking the casserole, she spooned it into bowls, explaining, “This is basically mac and cheese that took a trip around the world.”
The full recipe is available on the Food Network website.
‘The Pioneer Woman’ star’s family love casseroles
Drummond is a fan of family-friendly casseroles and one of the Drummond family’s favorite meals is an easy chicken spaghetti casserole. “This is such a simple dish,” she shared during an episode of The Pioneer Woman. “And, one of the things that makes this casserole so great is that it’s easy to eat.”
She shreds cooked chicken in a bowl and adds onions, green and red bell peppers, salt, cayenne pepper, seasoned salt, and canned cream of mushroom soup. Drummond stirs cooked spaghetti with the other ingredients, adds cheddar cheese, and pours everything into a casserole dish.
After sprinkling on another layer of cheese, she bakes the casserole in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 35 to 40 minutes.
You can find the full recipe on the Food Network website.
