Butternut Squash Gratin

Potato gratin and other gratins are usually made with heavy cream and starchy vegetables such as potatoes or sweet potatoes. Here's a low carb version of a gratin using butternut squash and either a nut or seed cream in place of the heavy cream.

This is a lighter gratin thanks to butternut squash and just enough creamy cashew cheese. If you want more of a cream sauce I recommend adding another ½ cup of cashew cheese to the squash. You can also make this dairy free by replacing the cheddar cheese with a plant-based cheddar or other plant-based cheese, or add more cashew cheese on top. I used a white, goat cheddar cheese, so if you use a yellow cheddar the dish will have a more yellow hue to it.

This dish is easy to prep ahead of time and bake when ready. You can slice up the butternut squash ahead of time, make the cashew cream cheese, and shred the cheddar cheese, and then bake when ready. Another shortcut is to use cubed or pre-sliced butternut squash.

I recommend keeping the gratin to just a few layers of butternut squash so it cooks through without a lot of baking time. My 9 inch by 13 inch baking dish works well here, or you can use a larger baking dish or baking sheet if you need to spread out the layers. And follow my foil tenting trick to cook the squash. Enjoy!