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.
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:
- Butternut squash white bean mash - this goes perfectly with roasted turkey breast, a great Thanksgiving dinner for two or for small families!
- Butternut squash spinach skillet
- Gochujang roasted butternut squash
- Butternut squash Thanksgiving stuffing
- 20 Butternut squash side dish recipes
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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 butternut squash recipes?
Try these reader favorites:
- Butternut squash spinach skillet
- Lentil butternut squash soup
- Beet and butternut squash soup
- Butternut squash Alfredo pasta
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!!
Baked Chickpeas with Butternut Squash Casserole
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
- Casserole pan
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!
- 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.
- 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
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:
- Roasted Brussels Sprouts and Chickpea Salad
- Curried Kale and Chickpeas
- Roasted Vegetable Winter Salad
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.
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.
Arlene
Wednesday 31st of August 2022
I love the flavour of this dish. I made a half portion and half of that was fine for a main meal for me. However, 10 minutes wasn’t enough to heat the dish and the dish needed more liquid. I will add some stock next time. It didn’t need the broiler as the Parmesan browned nicely. Maybe because I was using home made Parmesan. 😂 I used my air fryer to cook the squash and garlic and it had a very strong garlic taste which I liked.
Kate
Thursday 1st of September 2022
Hi Arlene, I'm so glad you loved the flavor! I think the broiler might help the dish heat through, but if you need more than 10 minutes, it's fine to leave the dish in the oven for a little longer!
DR
Monday 3rd of January 2022
This is absolutely delicious. Thanks for the recipe.
Kate
Tuesday 4th of January 2022
Thanks! Enjoy!