Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole

Delicious Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole: A Fall Comfort Food Delight

This  Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole perfectly captures the essence of the season. As the crisp autumn closes in, it’s time to embrace the warmth and coziness of fall-inspired comfort food.  Finally! This is my favorite season. This delectable dish combines the rich flavors of roasted butternut squash, soft bagel pieces, and the creamy goodness of shredded Gruyere cheese. Furthermore, all bathed in a luscious creamy bechamel sauce with a touch of white wine.

Key Ingredients:

First:  Roasted Butternut Squash: The star of this dish, roasted butternut squash adds a sweet and nutty flavor.  It’s my favorite in all of squashland.

Second: Plain Bagel Pieces: Cubed pieces of plain bagels provide the perfect base for this casserole.  Generally, I recommend sticking to the plain variety. Flavored bagels could be a flavor distraction.

Third: Shredded Gruyere Cheese: Gruyere cheese, with its distinct nutty and slightly sweet taste, melts beautifully and adds a creamy texture to the dish.

Fourth:  Bechamel Sauce: The velvety bechamel sauce, made with light cream and a hint of white wine, elevates the casserole to a whole new level of indulgence.

This Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole not only captures the essence of fall with its comforting flavors but is also incredibly easy to prepare. With just a handful of ingredients, it’s a dish that can be whipped up in no time, making it perfect for busy weeknight dinners or weekend gatherings with friends and family.

Stick to this Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole recipe or by all means, opt for substitutions.  Regardless, this casserole is a delightful way to embrace the flavors of autumn and enjoy a comforting meal with loved ones.

Tips for making Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole:

• Roast the squash whole. Yes, you read that right. Just slap that sucker on a parchment-lined baking sheet and let the oven do the work for you.  As a result, this saves a lot of peeling and dicing. After roasting whole, the skin will fall off easily.
• Save time by roasting the squash the day before.  I pop squash and pie pumpkins in the oven the day or night before. I let my oven do the work for me. Consequently, this significantly shortens preparing a recipe that calls for pumpkin or squash puree.
• If butternut squash is not available, instead,  substitute it with pumpkin or acorn squash for a similar taste and texture.
• Ditch the cream. As you can see, I used a light version of cream. You can choose to use whole or reduced-fat milk. Alternately, swap it out for any of the nut milks. On the other hand, make it more decadent by using full-fat cream or coconut milk.
• For a non-alcoholic version, you can replace the white wine with chicken or vegetable broth.
• Pick your cheese. I love the way the mild, nutty flavor of gruyere works in this recipe. However, feel free to switch it up with workhorse cheddar. Another idea is to clean out the bits and pieces of cheese left over in your fridge and make it a combo.
• Get Nutty. As much as I love this recipe, next time I will add chopped raw walnuts for a bit of crunch and flavor.

Print

Butternut Gruyere Bagel Casserole

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American, Fall

Keyword bagels, Butternut squash, casseroles, fall casseroles, fall side dishes, Gruyere Cheese, squash recipes

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 8

Author Lora Wiley-Lennartz

Ingredients

• 1 medium sized butternut squash
• 4 plain bagels cut into pieces
• 7 oz gruyere cheese shredded
• 1/4 cup unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 2 cups light cream
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2. Place the whole squash on a parchment lined baking sheet.

3. Bake for 40 -50 minutes until you can easily run a fork through it.

4. When the squash is cool enough to handle, peel, de-seed and mash.

5. Leave the oven on at 350 degrees F.

6. Grease a 10” x 12” casserole dish.

7. In a large bowl or on top of a cutting board, combine the squash bagels and 3/4 of the cheese.

8. Scrape the mixture into the prepared casserole dish.

9. Heat the butter in a skillet.

10. When the butter is bubbling, quickly whisk in the flour, thickening the mixture. 
whisk in the wine and cream. Bring to a boil.

11. Stir in 3/4 of the gruyere.

12. Season with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

13. When the cheese has melted, pour into the casserole dish.

14. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes.

15. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Meanwhile, check out some of these other Butternut Squash recipes:

Butternut Squash Honey Soup

Butternut Squash Sauerkraut Quinoa Cabbage Rolls

Butternut Squash Ground Beef Casserole