Creamy Pumpkin Butter Beans

This cozy fall skillet of Creamy Pumpkin Butter Beans with rosemary, cashew cream, and crispy bacon is what dreams are made of. A one-skillet recipe that you can’t get enough of! Dairy-free, but oh-so-rich and creamy.

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Your Favorite Pumpkin Recipe

This creamy Creamy Pumpkin Butter Bean skillet is perfect to scoop up with crusty bread or perfect to serve with braised meats. From appetizers to side dishes, it can do it all. Serve it up at your next Festive event! This plant-forward recipe reheats like a dream and hits all the creamy, sweet, savory notes your taste buds want!

Ingredients for Creamy Pumpkin Butter Beans

• Bacon: I used homemade boar bacon, but any brand will do. You will want to cook it up crispy. You can also use turkey bacon for pork free. Skip it for plant-based, use avocado oil for fat.
• Shallots + Garlic: Can’t have a recipe without the aliums. You can use red onion instead of shallots.
• Butter Beans: Also known as lima beans. I like these for this recipe because they’re large, creamy and have a thin skin, as opposed to Faba beans which have a thicker skin, which I find hard to digest.
• Pumpkin or Kabocha Squash: You need pumpkin in Creamy Pumpkin Butter Beans, but butternut squash will work in a pinch!
• Raw Cashews: This is key for the dairy-free cream, which gives this cream bean skillet body and tang. You always need acid to break up the richness. The lemon used in the cream is a must!
• Rosemary: You can use thyme too, but rosemary and pumpkin are just a match made in heaven!

Step by Step Dairy Free Creamy Pumpkin Butter Beans Skillet Instructions

• You want to start by preparing your mise en place for Creamy Pumpkin Butter Beans. Measure everything out and set up your workstation. Then start by cooking your bacon until crispy in the skillet. You will need the rendered fat!
• While the bacon cooks, peel and dice 1/4 kabocha squash or 2 cups pumpkin. Mince your shallots and garlic. Remove the bacon from the skillet and set aside.
• Cook the pumpkin for a few minutes, add salt and pepper. Add in the shallots, garlic, and 2 springs of rosemary. Cook, stirring occasionally until aromatic. Then pour in the bone broth. Lower heat, and cover.
• While the pumpkin cooks, prepare the cashew cream. In a blender combine the cashews, water, juice of 1 lemon, 1 garlic clove, salt, pepper, and nutritional yeast. Blend until smooth, set aside.
• Once the pumpkin is soft, open the lid, and mash with a spoon until most of the cubes are mushed. Stir in the cream, minced rosemary, and the beans. Simmer until you get the desired thickness for your creamy pumpkin butter beans. Lastly, stir in the bacon. Now you’re ready to dig in.
• I like to serve with shaved red onion on top and scoop it up with crusty bread, but this recipe would be amazing with braised short ribs or crispy tofu as a side dish.