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This Creamy Pumpkin Casserole is my new favorite fall dish. This optionally dairy-free dish has pumpkin, spinach, and chicken and is topped with a delicious sauce and baked to perfection. It’s Paleo and Whole30, too.
Dairy-free Pumpkin Casserole
I know most people think of sweet when they think of pumpkin, but savory pumpkin dishes are so delicious! This hearty fall dinner is packed full of pumpkin flavor, both in the sauce and within the casserole itself. Plus, this one is paleo-friendly and lower-carb thanks to the use of spaghetti squash as the base!
Ingredients Needed:
- Cooked Spaghetti Squash
- Shallot and Onion
- Garlic
- Pumpkin
- Chicken (optional)
- Spinach
- Parmesan Cheese (optional, omit for dairy-free)
- Almond Milk
- Mayo
- Spices
Substitutions
Spaghetti Squash: Using this instead of pasta or rice makes this much more nutrient-dense and lower-carb. However, if you wanted to try this with gluten-free pasta or rice, it may work, though we can’t guarantee it since we haven’t tested it ourselves.
Pumpkin: I mean…this is a pumpkin casserole. But you could use butternut squash in its place with a very similar, if not the same, flavor profile.
Chicken: You can leave this out to make this vegetarian…or if you aren’t vegetarian bacon also might be another swap!
Mayo: We haven’t tried this, but cashew cream should probably work as a replacement for mayo.
Cheese: Leave it out if you can’t have it for dietary reasons.
How to Make this Pumpkin Casserole
- Roast or cook the squash in an Instant Pot. Check out this article for more info.
- Saute the aromatics, veggies and chicken!
- Mix together the sauce.
- Assemble and bake!
If you are all about the pumpkin recipes, check out these others:
- Homemade Pumpkin Purée
- How to Make Pumpkin Butter
- Gluten Free Pumpkin Pie (Nut-Free, Too!)
- Sea Salt Chocolate Pumpkin Cups
Creamy Pumpkin Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 large spaghetti squash about 5 cups cooked
- 1 shallot minced
- 1 onion minced
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 4 cups pumpkin or squash of choice peeled and diced
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cubed
- 2 cups spinach
For the sauce:
- 1/4 cup mayo homemade or store-bought
- 2 tablespoons pumpkin puree
- 2 tablespoons almond milk
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt more to taste
- 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
- Pinch of cinnamon
For topping:
- 1/3 cup fresh Parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- Cook spaghetti squash. Find instructions here.
- In a large skillet over medium heat heat 1 tablespoon oil and add onion shallots, and garlic cook for 1-2 minutes, until shallot just starts to become translucent. Add in pumpkin or squash and cook until just about tender, about 8 minutes. Add in chicken, and a big pinch of salt and pepper and continue cook until no pink remains, about 8 minutes. Add in 2 cups of spinach and cook for 3-5 minutes, until spinach starts to wilt. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a small bowl mix all sauce ingredients together and set aside. Grease a 8" x 8" (or similar sized) casserole dish and set aside.
- Take spaghetti squash out of oven, let cool. Using a fork scrape out the spaghetti squash into a greased casserole pan. Add in pumpkin and chicken mixture, and top with the sauce. Top with Parmesan, if desired.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes, and broil for 3-5 minutes, or until the cheese is melted.
- Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.
I plan to make this for dinner to go with my husband’s MEAT & POTATOES. We share cooking and it sometimes a challenge to pack in a days worth of vegetables with his dinner. I am know within my family for tryiing new recipes and altering. Forgive me if I vary but I will use what I have. I noted that the person making the last comment did not care for it. I will keep that in mind. I do like my food heavily seasoned and as I said I use what I have. I was motivated today be about 1 cup of pumpkin puree in the refrigerator to be used.
I am sure we will like this dish. As he is cooking the chicken and potatoes on the grill, I can skip cooking any chicken today to add to the casserole.