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Baked Chickpeas with Butternut Squash

This Chickpeas with Butternut Squash Casserole combines two fantastic ingredients - hearty chickpeas and tender, sweet butternut squash - for a side dish that the whole family will love! This baked butternut squash dish is perfect as a Thanksgiving side dish or a meatless family dinner any night of the year.thanksgiving chickpeas and butternut squash Thanksgiving casserole

I originally created this recipe for Randall Beans as a Thanksgiving side dish recipe, but the more I make this Chickpeas and Butternut Squash Casserole, the more I want to eat it all year long.

Here's what people are saying about this recipe:

"Thanks to this recipe I am one step closer to converting my family into true Meatless Mondays believers"

By the way, here are a few other favorite butternut squash side dishes:

thanksgiving chickpeas with butternut squash casserole

It is just the perfect vegetarian side dish and I am not willing to wait until Thanksgiving every year to eat it.

More winter squash recipes to try: Air Fryer Acorn Squash

Sounds good! How do I make this baked chickpea & butternut squash dish??

Ingredients:

  • 2 15-oz cans chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
  • 1.5 lb butternut squash, peeled and cubed into ½ inch pieces (about 4 rounded cups)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ cup milk
  • ¼ cup half n half
  • 3 garlic cloves
  • 6-8 fresh sage leaves, roughly chopped
  • Salt to taste (about 1 teaspoon), freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme (about 10-15 sprigs)
  • ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese (or more, to spread on top of the casserole pan)

Related recipe: Chicken Wild Rice Casserole

How to make this butternut squash casserole

Step 1: Start by roasting cubed butternut squash and whole garlic cloves at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes to bring out their sweetness and aroma. This makes for an extra flavorful casserole. 

cubed butternut squash on a roasting pan

You'll use half the roasted butternut squash for the sauce, and leave half the roasted squash in cubes to combine with the chickpeas.

Step 1: Make the sauce. It's super easy. Just add half of the roasted butternut squash (about 2 cups), milk, half and half, roasted garlic, and herbs into a blender and pulse for a few seconds until smooth.

pouring sauce over thanksgiving chickpeas with butternut squash casserole

Step 3: Arrange the casserole: combine the chickpeas and roasted butternut squash in a baking dish, cover with sauce, and mix. And here comes the best part:

The casserole is topped with a generous amount of Parmesan cheese and baked in the oven until the sauce gets all bubbly and delicious. I really recommend using a block of Parmesan cheese and grating it fresh for this recipe.

thanksgiving chickpeas with butternut squash casserole ready to go in the oven

You'll get the most flavor and an amazing Parmesan crust this way. It won't turn out the same if you use powdered packaged Parmesan cheese.

grated parmesan on a board with roasted garlic

Step 4: Bake for about 10 minutes, then broil. The casserole gets popped under the broiler for a few minutes to really melt that Parmesan cheese topping and make a golden-brown cheesy crust.

The Parmesan cheese crust is AMAZING - one of the best parts of this dish! There is also fresh thyme sprinkled in with the Parmesan cheese, and when it is broiled the lovely fresh essence of the thyme really comes through to give this dish even more flavor.

thanksgiving chickpeas with butternut squash casserole

Related recipe: Pumpkin Frittata (you can use butternut squash for this Frittata, or you can use roasted pumpkin to make this chickpea casserole!)

Perfect meatless dinner or Thanksgiving side dish

This Butternut Squash and Chickpeas Casserole is perfect for Thanksgiving because it is a hearty, filling dish that is great for vegetarians or those who simply don't want to fill up on turkey. But as I said, it's a great casserole year-round, especially when butternut squash is in season in the Fall and Winter.

You'll love the aroma of this dish filling up your house on a cool Fall day.

Look at that perfectly baked butternut squash casserole!

Looking for other squash recipes?

Try these reader favorites:

If you liked this recipe, please leave me a comment below and let me know! I love to hear from you all, it makes my day. And don't forget to leave a rating, and share the recipe on Facebook and Pinterest. Thanks!!

pinnable image of butternut squash Thanksgiving casserole

thanksgiving chickpeas
Print Recipe
4.58 from 121 votes

Baked Chickpeas with Butternut Squash Casserole

This Chickpeas with Butternut Squash Casserole combines two fantastic ingredients - hearty chickpeas and tender, sweet butternut squash - for a side dish that the whole family will love!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time35 minutes
Resting time10 minutes
Total Time45 minutes
Course: Dinner, Side Dish
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6 servings as a side dish, 4 as a main dish
Author: Kate

Ingredients

  • 2 15-oz cans chickpeas - (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
  • 1.5 lb butternut squash - , peeled and cubed into ½ inch pieces (about 4 rounded cups)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • ½ cup milk
  • ¼ cup half n half
  • 3 garlic cloves - , peeled
  • 6-8 fresh sage leaves - , roughly chopped
  • Salt to taste - (about 1 teaspoon), freshly ground black pepper to taste
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme - , divided (about 10-15 sprigs)
  • ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese - or more, to spread on top of the casserole pan

Special equipment

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 400F. Grease a large baking sheet with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Add the cubed butternut squash and peeled garlic cloves to the baking dish in one layer, and drizzle with the other tablespoon of olive oil. Roast for 15-20 minutes, or until the butternut squash is fork-tender. Set aside to cool down. Do not turn off the oven yet!
    butternut squash for thanksgiving chickpeas with butternut squash casserole
  • In a food processor or blender, combine the milk, half and half, roasted garlic, chopped sage leaves, 1 teaspoon thyme leaves, salt, and pepper. Add half of the roasted butternut squash (about 2 cups) and pulse for a few seconds until smooth. 
  • Add the drained chickpeas and the remaining 2 cups roasted butternut squash to a small-medium casserole dish (1.5 - 2.5 quarts). Pour the butternut squash sauce over the chickpeas/butternut squash mixture and stir gently to combine. Top generously with grated Parmesan cheese and the remaining fresh thyme leaves. Add a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper. 
    pouring sauce over thanksgiving chickpeas with butternut squash casserole
  • Bake for 10 minutes until the casserole is heated through and the cheese starts to melt. Turn on the broiler and set the casserole under the direct heat of the broiler for 2-3 minutes, or until the Parmesan cheese turns golden brown. Keep and eye on it, since the broiler can burn food quickly.
    Remove the casserole from heat and cool 10 minutes before serving. 

Video

Notes

  • A small butternut squash typically weighs around 1.5 - 2 lbs. You can use up to 2 lb butternut squash in this recipe,.
  • You can use any kind of milk you prefer for this recipe - 1%, 2%, or whole milk. You can use unsweetened almond milk or soy milk as well.
  • The amount of Parmesan cheese will depend on how large your casserole dish is and how much you like cheese. 🙂 Just make sure that the casserole has a nice layer of shredded Parmesan cheese on top before baking.
  • These are the casserole dishes I use for this recipe: 2.5 quart Corningware or 1.3 quart Pyrex dish.
  • The nutrition facts are estimated assuming this recipe makes 6 servings. 

Nutrition

Calories: 307kcal (15%) | Carbohydrates: 34g (11%) | Protein: 8g (16%) | Fat: 9g (14%) | Saturated Fat: 2g (10%) | Cholesterol: 6mg (2%) | Sodium: 18mg (1%) | Potassium: 552mg (16%) | Fiber: 8g (32%) | Sugar: 7g (8%) | Vitamin A: 12155IU (243%) | Vitamin C: 25mg (30%) | Calcium: 93mg (9%) | Iron: 1mg (6%)

The nutritional information displayed is an estimate and not to be used as dietary or nutritional advice. Consult a nutritionist or dietician for nutritional info based on the exact ingredients you use.

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Before you go, check out these other great cold weather comfort dishes:

 

Comments or questions about the recipe?
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DPM

Friday 10th of November 2023

Made this as a vegetarian main dish and it was yummy! Thanks!

Mrs

Sunday 17th of September 2023

I am vegan I too substituted the milk with cashew milk and the half and half for coconut cream. Added mushrooms and soy curls with vegan cheese. Thank you so filling!

Kate

Monday 18th of September 2023

Those sound like really good substitutions/additions! I do love soy curls.

Diane

Thursday 24th of November 2022

How about using homemade cashew cream for the dairy? It is delicious

Kate

Saturday 26th of November 2022

Yes that would definitely work!

Sherri

Saturday 5th of November 2022

Like many others , I think this is delicious!! I used 3/cup full fat canned coconut milk instead of the dairy options which turned out perfect. I also substituted dried herbs for fresh and left out the cheese. Next time I may use only one can of beans and add some cauliflower instead. Thanks for this easy recipe.

Kate

Friday 11th of November 2022

Enjoy!! This is great with cauliflower!

Lori

Friday 30th of September 2022

We loved this and used it as a meal and not a side. Side note, I weighed the squash, but once cooked, it was not 4 cups like the recipe called for, more like 1.75 cups. So I used all that in the sauce and chopped up some zucchini for the dish as I didn't have any more squash to use.

Brenda

Saturday 25th of February 2023

@Kate, if i were to use some cauliflower do you think I should cook it in the over first

Kate

Monday 3rd of October 2022

So glad you liked this! It is definitely hearty enough to be a meal. I like the addition of zucchini. I wonder if some squash is more dense / contains more water than others.

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