Make this easy butternut squash and sausage dinner tonight! Everything is roasted on a sheet pan in the oven and drizzled with a sweet mustard dressing just before serving.
Sheet pan butternut squash and sausage is one of our favorite fall meals. Well-seasoned butternut pieces and sausages are baked with apples and red onions, then served with the dressing.
You can serve them with a good slice of crusty bread, couscous, or rice. My favorite is couscous. I love to gently mash the soft squash, onions, and apples, mix them with the couscous, and serve the sausage on top. I also use squash and couscous in this Couscous and Pumpkin Salad.
Every fall, I buy lots of squash and pumpkins from a local farmer because they store well in the cellar. So we eat plenty of butternut or pumpkin dishes like this Pumpkin and Chorizo Soup or the Butternut Squash Pasta.
Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 35 minutes | Ingredients: 10 + oil, salt & pepper | Servings: 6 | Difficulty: Easy
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Recipe ingredients
Butternut squash: You'll need a small squash weighing about 2 lb/900 g before peeling and removing the seeds. You can also use peeled, cubed squash from the grocery store. You can also use unpeeled Hokkaido, peeled acorn squash or seeded, or unpeeled delicata squash.
- If you have a bit of butternut left, try this Roasted Pumpkin and Feta Pizza.
Sausages: Use fresh, uncooked sausages, such as bratwurst or mild Italian sausages. Mine weigh about 3.5 oz/100 g each. Smaller links will cook faster, so check a bit sooner.
Firm apples that won't fall apart in the oven, like Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Pink Lady. There's no need to peel them. You can make this Apple Beet Salad and serve it with today's dish.
Red onions: Cut them into wedges, not thin slices, so they don't burn before the sausages are cooked. Yellow onions are fine, too.
Seasoning: Olive oil, dried thyme, garlic powder, sweet paprika, salt, and pepper.
Dressing: Maple syrup, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, and olive oil.
See the recipe card for detailed instructions and full information on ingredients and quantities.
How to make butternut squash and sausages?
Step #1: Peel, seed, and cube the squash. Toss with the oil and seasoning mixture on the baking sheet and roast for 8 minutes at 425°F/220°C.
Step #2: Cut the onions and cored apples into wedges. Toss the onions with 1 teaspoon of oil and brush the sausages with the remaining teaspoon.
Step #3: Turn the squash, add the onions and sausages, and roast for another 15 minutes.
Step #4: Turn the sausages and add the apple wedges between them.
Step #5: Roast for another 10-15 minutes, until the squash is tender and the sausages are browned and cooked through.
Step #6: Whisk together the dressing ingredients and drizzle over the sausages and vegetables just before serving.
Tips
Cut the squash into even pieces, about ¾ inch/2 cm. Larger chunks may still be firm when the sausages are done. If you want larger pieces or wedges, that is fine too; bake them a bit longer than 8 minutes before you add the onions and the sausages; they should be about half done.
Add the apples for the final part of the cooking time. They should soften but still hold their shape.
Check the sausages with an instant-read thermometer. Pork or beef sausages need to reach 160°F/71°C; chicken or turkey sausages need 165°F/74°C. If they finish before the squash, remove them and let the vegetables roast a little longer. If you don't have a thermometer, just cut a sausage through the middle.
Storage and reheating
Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
Freeze: I am not a fan of freezing this dish, but you can do it for up to 3 months; the squash and apples will be softer after thawing. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator.
Reheat at 350°F/180°C in the oven or in the microwave.
More sheet pan meals
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📖 Recipe
Sheet Pan Butternut Squash and Sausage
Equipment
- Large rimmed baking sheet Note 1
- Chef's knife and cutting board
- Two small bowls
- Instant-read meat thermometer optional, Note 2
Ingredients
Butternut squash:
- 2 lb butternut squash weighed before peeling and removing the seeds, Note 3
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ¾ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
Sausages and vegetables:
- 2 red onions about 5.5 oz/150 g total
- 6 fresh uncooked sausage links about 3.5 oz/100 g each, Note 4
- 2 teaspoons olive oil divided
- 2 firm apples about 9 oz/250 g total, Note 5
Dressing:
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- fine sea salt and ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C.
- Prepare the squash: Peel the butternut squash, cut it in half, and scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Cut the flesh into approximately ¾-inch/2 cm cubes and place them on the baking sheet.2 lb butternut squash
- Season the squash: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, thyme, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Pour over the squash and toss well to coat. Spread the cubes in a single layer.2 tablespoons olive oil + 1 teaspoon dried thyme + ¾ teaspoon garlic powder + 1 teaspoon sweet paprika + ½ teaspoon fine sea salt + ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- Roast the squash for 8 minutes.
- Prepare the onions: Meanwhile, peel the onions and cut each into 8 wedges. Toss with 1 teaspoon of the olive oil.2 red onions + 1 teaspoons olive oil
- Prepare the sausages: Brush the sausages with the remaining teaspoon of olive oil.6 fresh uncooked sausage links + 1 teaspoons olive oil
- Add the onions and sausages: Remove the baking sheet from the oven and toss the squash around a bit. Add the onions and sausages, spreading everything out as evenly as possible. Return to the oven and roast for another 15 minutes.
- Add the apples: Core the apples and cut each into 8 wedges, leaving the skin on. Remove the baking sheet from the oven and turn the sausages with tongs. Tuck the apple wedges between the sausages.2 firm apples
- Roast for another 10 minutes, or until the squash is tender and the sausages are browned and cooked through. Pork or beef sausages should reach an internal temperature of 160°F/71°C; chicken or turkey sausages should reach 165°F/74°C. If the center of the thickest sausage still looks raw when cut open, roast for another 5 minutes and check again.
- Make the dressing: In the second small bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, Dijon mustard, apple cider vinegar, and olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.1 tablespoon maple syrup + 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard + 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar + 1 tablespoon olive oil + fine sea salt and ground black pepper
- Finish and serve: Drizzle the dressing over the roasted squash, sausages, onions, and apples. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Pan size: Use a large rimmed baking sheet and spread the ingredients in a single layer. If the pan is crowded, divide everything between two pans. If using two oven racks, swap the pans' positions partway through roasting.
- Check: An instant-read thermometer is very helpful, but if you don't have one, it's also ok. If the center of the thickest sausage still looks raw when cut open, roast for another 5 minutes and check again.
- Other squash: You can also use unpeeled Hokkaido squash, peeled acorn squash, or seeded, unpeeled delicata squash. Cut acorn squash into ¾-inch/2 cm cubes and delicata into thick half-moons. Cooking times may vary, so check for tenderness as they roast.
- Sausages: Bratwurst or mild Italian pork sausages. Use fresh, uncooked links of a similar size to those listed; smaller sausages may cook more quickly.
- Apples: Choose firm apples that hold their shape, such as Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Pink Lady. Leave the skins on to help keep the wedges intact.
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