Creamy Butternut Squash Orzo
Budget-friendly, but indulgent Creamy Butternut Squash Orzo. The perfect cozy meal to welcome the fall. Topped with sage-infused mushrooms and crispy chickpeas.
The highlight of fall for me are the beautiful warm tones that you see in the seasonal produce. And the best of those tones are seen in butternut squash, so I’ve been eager to play with this humble piece of produce since it has popped up in my local market.
This orzo draws on my popular Creamy Butternut Squash Pasta, but instead uses the butternut squash to create a beautiful warm and velvety sauce.
Why You’ll Love This Butternut Squash Orzo
- Fancy, but affordable. All of the ingredients were chosen intentionally to make this dish as budget-friendly as possible, but with the techniques used, you are elevating these simple ingredients into something more indulgent.
- All the right textures. You get a cozy and creamy orzo base that is topped with crispy chickpeas and the most satisfying mushrooms on top.
- Full on flavor. The balance of the herby and savory from the chickpeas and mushrooms pairs perfectly with the slightly sweet aspects of the butternut squash. Truly, an amazing flavor combo.
Key Ingredients and Substitutions
- Butternut Squash: You can also try this recipe with roasted sweet potato. Just note, depending on the size of your squash or sweet potato, you may need to roast them longer.
- Shallots: If you don’t have a shallot, a sweet yellow onion can work well here too.
- Garlic: Most of the garlic is roasted in the oven, but save some to sauté with the mushrooms for more flavor.
- Chickpeas: The chickpeas work really great for crispy element, but you can also serve it with some panko crusted tofu.
- Herbs: I used thyme and sage as the primary flavors. If you don’t have sage available, a teaspoon of fresh minced rosemary could work as well as dry herbs in a pinch.
- Milk: You can create the cream sauce with either soy milk or oat milk. Just make sure they are unsweetened or else it will throw off the flavors.
- Mushrooms: If it is within your budget, feel free to use fancier mushrooms like oyster mushrooms or shiitake mushrooms. If you are not a fan of mushrooms you can try sautéing some broccolini with the garlic and sage as a replacement.
- Vegetable Bouillon: This helps to add some extra umami flavor to the sauce. I like to either use a bouillon base or a bouillon cube. If you don’t have this available, a teaspoon of yellow/white miso paste can work. You can also replace the water with some boxed vegetable broth.
How to Make Creamy Butternut Squash Orzo
Dry the chickpeas in a clean kitchen towel. Add chickpeas, shallots, garlic cloves in peels, and squash to a baking sheet. Drizzle with oil, spread on the cut side of the squash and toss everything else to coat. Season with salt and top the squash with thyme, then flip it over so it is cut side down on the pan. Roast 30 minutes. At 20 minutes, remove garlic and toss the chickpeas and shallots before roasting again.
While roasting, heat up a skillet and add the mushrooms, arranging in a single layer. Cook undisturbed to release their water. Stir and continue to cook until most of the moisture is gone. Season with salt and drizzle with olive oil. Sauté the mushrooms until browned then add the remaining sliced garlic and sage. Continue to sauté until the sage wilts and becomes a deeper green then set aside.
Cook orzo according to package until al dente. Drain and add it back to the pot.
Scoop out the flesh of the squash and add it to a blender with the shallots, peeled roasted garlic, milk, water, nutritional yeast and bouillon paste. Blend until smooth then pour into the pot with the orzo. Stir to coat and adjust seasonings as desired. Now assemble. Plate the orzo and top with the mushrooms, chickpeas and pepitas for garnish.
Expert Tips
- Roast the butternut squash cut side down. This will make sure that the squash caramelizes as it roasts giving it more flavor.
- Roasting time of squash will depend on it’s size. If you have an extra thick squash, you may need to cook it for longer. Before blending, make sure that you can pierce the squash easily with a fork.
- To save time roasting, consider using pre-cubed butternut squash. Buying it pre-cubed will cut down on the time needed to cook and you don’t have to do any extra chopping. Season as recommended and roast on the baking tray in a single layer.
- For the best mushroom texture, dry sauté them first to remove excess moisture. Once all the moisture is gone, then add the salt and oil and sauté to brown and crisp them up around the edges.
- To save time, prep the mushrooms and orzo while the squash roasts. You can also place the sauce ingredients into the blender in advance and add the garlic and butternut squash once they are done cooking.
- Add more liquid if your butternut squash sauce is too thick. Just add an extra splash of water or veggie broth until it is at your desired smooth consistency.
Frequently Asked Question
If you want to make this dish in advance, I would recommend storing the components of this dish separately. Store left over butternut squash orzo in an airtight container and place in the fridge for up to 3 days. The mushrooms can also be stored in a separate airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you store the chickpeas in the fridge they will not stay crispy, but you can always reheat it in the air fryer or in a toaster oven for 5-10 minutes to crisp them back up if desired.
While the skin is not used in the sauce in order to make it as smooth as possible, do not throw it away! Honestly, the squash skins are edible as they are thin compared to other winter squash. I like to snack on it while I’m prepping the other ingredients in this dish.
You can opt for gluten-free orzo or try a high protein orzo like shape from brands like banza. You can try using cooked quinoa if you a different grain to try.
How to Serve
This creamy orzo is meant to be paired with the roasted chickpeas and mushrooms to create a full balanced meal. However, you can change up what you pair with the orzo. Some options include:
More Vegan Pasta Dishes to Try
Creamy Butternut Squash Orzo
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 3 servings 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove Top
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Description
Budget-friendly, but indulgent Creamy Butternut Squash Orzo. The perfect cozy meal to welcome the fall. Topped with sage-infused mushrooms and crispy chickpeas.
Ingredients
- 1, 15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
- 1 lb butternut squash, cut in half with seeds scooped out (I used 1/2 of a medium sized butternut squash)
- 1 large shallot, roughly chopped
- 8 cloves of garlic (leave 6 in their peel and slice up the remaining 2)
- 1–2 tbsp oil
- 8 sprigs of thyme
- 3/4 cup unsweetened soy milk or oat milk (room temperature)
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp reduced sodium vegetable bouillon paste or half a bouillon cube
- 12 sage leaves
- 1 cup sliced mushrooms
- 1 cup dry orzo
- Pepitas, for garnish
- Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F. Place chickpeas in a clean kitchen towel and pat dry to remove excess moisture. Add the chickpeas, shallots, 6 cloves of garlic with their skin on, and the butternut squash to a parchment lined baking sheet. Drizzle everything with oil, spread it over the cut side of the squash and toss everything else to coat. Season with a generous pinch of salt and top the squash with the thyme sprigs, then flip it over so it is cut side down on the pan.
- Roast for 30 minutes, making sure to remove the garlic cloves and to toss the chickpeas and shallots at the 20 minute mark.
- While everything roasts, prepare the mushrooms and orzo. Heat up a skillet and add the mushrooms with no oil and arrange into a single layer on the pan. Leave them undisturbed for a 4-5 minutes to release their water, then stir and continue to cook until most of the moisture is gone and they appear to start browning. Now season with a pinch of salt and a drizzle of olive oil . Sauté the mushrooms for an extra 2-3 minutes to brown them more then add the garlic slices and sage. Continue to sauté until the sage wilts and becomes a deeper green then set aside.
- To cook the orzo, fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil when the squash is almost done cooking. Generously salt the water and cook the orzo according to package until al dente. Drain the pasta and add it back to the pot.
- Scoop out the flesh of the squash and add it to a blender with the shallots, peeled roasted garlic, milk, water, nutritional yeast and the bouillon paste. Blend until smooth then pour it into the pot with the orzo. Stir to fully coat and adjust seasonings as desired.
- Assemble your plate with the creamy orzo and top with the sage and mushrooms, the chickpeas and pepitas.
Notes
Roast the butternut squash cut side down. This will make sure that the squash caramelizes as it roasts giving it more flavor.
Roasting time of squash will depend on it’s size. If you have an extra thick squash, you may need to cook it for longer. Before blending, make sure that you can pierce the squash easily with a fork.
To save time roasting, consider using pre-cubed butternut squash. Buying it pre-cubed will cut down on the time needed to cook and you don’t have to do any extra chopping. Season as recommended and roast on the baking tray in a single layer.
For the best mushroom texture, dry sauté them first to remove excess moisture. Once all the moisture is gone, then add the salt and oil and sauté to brown and crisp them up around the edges.
To save time, prep the mushrooms and orzo while the squash roasts. You can also place the sauce ingredients into the blender in advance and add the garlic and butternut squash once they are done cooking.
Add more liquid if your butternut squash sauce is too thick. Just add an extra splash of water or veggie broth until it is at your desired smooth consistency.
If you tried this recipe or any other recipe on the blog, then let me know what you thought in the comments below! And if you loved it, don’t forget to rate it too. Feel free to follow on Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok for the latest nutrition tips and recipe videos.
★ Catherine
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