Maple Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberries and Pecans

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This Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberries and Pecans is a deliciously festive addition to your holiday table! Maple glazed butternut squash is sweet and savory, with little pops of tart fresh cranberries and warm earthy sage. The perfect party side dish your guests will love!

A white dish of maple roasted butternut squash with fresh cranberries.

Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, this Roasted Butternut Squash and Cranberries is the perfect holiday side dish! It's quick and easy to prep, and can be made ahead of time for busy holiday parties. It's also a great dish to bring, easily transported to the host's house and kept warm in their oven!

Colorful, flavorful, and just a handful of simple ingredients, maple glazed butternut squash is a stunning side dish! It pairs well with any main course, turkey, ham, beef roast, steaks, anything!

Add to your Holiday menu:

Maple glazed butternut squash roasted with cranberries.

Ingredients

Bright fresh seasonal produce makes this dish best in the winter and fall!

Butternut Squash - Always the favorite winter squash, it's rich in flavor, heathy and a great choice for sweet and savory dishes. You could substitute another winter squash or even peeled and cubed sweet potatoes.

Butter and Olive Oil - These make up the maple glaze, boosting the flavor and helping the squash to roast evenly.

Maple Syrup - A slight hint of maple syrup brings out the natural sweetness in the butternut squash while not being overly sweet. You could substitute honey or brown sugar.

Salt - Always important in roasting vegetables, salt enhances the flavors of everything! Depending on your preference, you could use anywhere from ½ to ¾ teaspoon of kosher salt. Taste one at the end, you can finish with another pinch if you think it needs it.

Fresh Cranberries - Nothing screams the holidays like fresh cranberries! I always but a couple extra bags and freeze them, great for these Cranberry Baked Oatmeal Cups with White Chocolate or these Thanksgiving Cranberry Muffins! You could use frozen cranberries for this dish, just give them a quick rinse.

Pecans - Use raw baking pecans since you will be baking them in this dish. If all you have is roasted and salted pecans, just add them towards the end so they just warm through. Leave them whole or chop them. You can also substitute walnuts.

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Step 1 - Peel and chop the butternut squash. Peel the squash with a vegetable peeler and slice off each end. Freeze the ends for Homemade Chicken Stock! Use a scoop or a spoon to remove the seed cavity.

Then slice through the squash in half inch slices. Turn the slices on end to make strips, then cut into cubes. Try to get them as uniform as you can.

Chopping fresh butternut squash on a cutting board.

Step 2 - Add the squash to a baking dish and make the glaze. Chose a baking dish that is large enough to fit the squash in an even double layer (about 2 cubes on top of each other deep). The baking dish can be your serving dish.

Melt the butter in the microwave and add the olive oil and maple syrup. Whisk together with a fork.

Butternut squash peeled and chopped and added to a white baking dish.

Step 3 - Pour the glaze over the butternut squash and sprinkle evenly with salt. Use your hands to toss the squash, coating all pieces with the glaze.

Cubed butternut squash tossed in the maple butter glaze.

Step 4 - Cover with tinfoil and bake at 425° convection bake for 30 minutes.

The butternut squash wrapped in foil and ready to bake.

Step 5 - Take the dish out of the oven and remove the foil. Give it a good stir to re-coat in the glaze and ensure the squash cooks evenly. Top with the cranberries and pecans. Return to the oven, uncovered and roast for 30 more minutes or until the squash is softened.

*Tip - If the nuts begin to burn and the squash is not done, you can either stir them in or cover again with foil to protect them from burning.

Adding the cranberries and pecans to the par-baked butternut squash.

Garnish with fresh sage leave (whole or chopped) and serve!

A close up of roasted butternut squash with pecans side dish.

Variations & Additions

GOAT CHEESE! Yes, goat cheese makes a great topper for this maple roasted butternut squash. Most people are either goat cheese lovers or haters, so I didn't include it in the recipe. But if you love goat cheese, I think it goes beautifully with this side dish!

Vegan - Just substitute an extra tablespoon of olive oil for the butter to make this side dish vegan.

Gluten Free - This roasted butternut squash with cranberries and sage is already gluten-free!

Pomegranate Seeds & Walnuts - This Maple Glazed Butternut Squash could be left plain and just garnished with fresh sage. You could also substitute the cranberries and pecans for pomegranate seeds and walnuts. Don't bake the pomegranate seeds, just add them at the end.

A holiday side dish of roasted butternut squash with cranberries and sage.

Storage & Make Ahead Instructions

Storage and Leftovers - Store leftover roasted butternut squash with pecans in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Microwave or warm in the oven.

Leftovers are also delicious for breakfast or lunch topped with goat cheese and a fried egg!

Make Ahead Instructions - There are a few ways this dish can be made ahead of time:

Butternut Squash can be peeled and chopped and kept raw in the fridge for up to 3 days or frozen. Frozen squash can be used in this dish, no need to thaw, just roast a bit longer before removing the foil.
The butternut squash can be peel and chopped and tossed in the glaze a day in advance. Cover the baking dish with foil and keep in the fridge. Roast in the oven when ready!
You can also make this dish completely, rewrap it in the foil and a big towel and transport it to a party. Keep it warm in the host's oven until ready to serve.

Chef Tips

Cooking times can vary depending on the size you chopped the squash and how large of a baking dish you use. A larger dish will allow the squash to spread out and cook faster, while a smaller dish will pile it up more, needing more time to cook. Either is fine, just take it into account when roasting.

Give the squash a good stir when you take the foil off before adding the cranberries and pecans to go back in the oven. This will re-coat it in the glaze, and also help all the squash pieces cook evenly.

If you think the pecans are burning and the squash isn't quite done, you can either give everything a good stir, or recover the dish with foil. Both options will protect the nuts from burning while giving your squash more time.

Eat the sage! Fresh herbs make a beautiful garnish, but the sage is also really delicious and nicely balances the sweetness with an earthy warm aroma. You can mince some and sprinkle over the top, or keep the leaves whole. Fresh rosemary or thyme would be good substitutes.

Taste a squash for doneness! When your timer is up, taste one! It should be fairly soft but not totally mushy. If it needs a little more time, put it back in the oven. Remember all ovens are a little different and how large you chopped the squash can vary the cooking time.

Butternut squash and cranberries roasted in a casserole serving dish.

Is this Maple Roasted Butternut Squash Dish Vegan?

No, this dish is vegetarian but could easily be vegan. Just substitute an additional Tablespoon of olive oil in place of the butter and it's vegan!

Can I substitute dried cranberries for the fresh?

You can, but it will be quite a different finished dish. The fresh cranberries really give a bright fresh tart flavor, balancing the sweetness of the squash. If you'd like to use dried cranberries, don't bake them, just add them at the end. You could also substitute pomegranate seeds at the end, again don't bake them.

Can I use pre-chopped butternut squash from the store?

Yes! Pre-chopped squash will cut down on prep time! If they are cut too big, you can chop them up smaller.

More Holiday Side Dishes

If you made this recipe, I'd love to hear how you liked it! Be sure to leave a star rating and a comment below!

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