Butternut Squash Lasagna

I am a huge fan of lasagna, definitely one of my favorite meals.  So when I found this recipe for Butternut Squash Lasagna, I was very excited to try it.  Both my wife and I love butternut squash as a side.  It is a great healthy vegetable and a great substitute for sweet potatoes or other starches.  Butternut squash is low in calories and is very filling.  It is also very high in Vitamin A and polyphenols.  .  I was very surprised with the amount of time it took to prepare this meal.  From start to actually sitting at the table to eat was a few minutes over 1 hour.  The fact that you need to back the diced squash for 30 minutes, give you sufficient time to prepare the other layers for the lasagna.  After letting it cool and serving it to the family, it was fantastic.  I loved it, as I expected.  Sarah, thought it was very good.  The sage came through great and the hint of nutmeg with the squash went perfectly with the cheeses.  The only change I personally would make would be to use quinoa pasta as opposed the the whole wheat noodles we used.  But, that is strictly for my desire to avoid gluten.  I definitely recommend this recipe for anyone looking for a lower calorie, meat free lasagna option.

Ingredients

• • 3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
  • 1 pound whole-milk ricotta cheese
  • 1/2 cup heavy cream
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 1/2 pound fresh mozzarella cheese, coarsely grated (2 cups)
  • Freshly grated nutmeg
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/3 cup loosely packed fresh sage leaves, coarsely chopped
  • 1 1/4 cups homemade or store-bought low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
  • Fresh Lasagna Noodles cut into 4-by-13-inch strips and cooked, or store-bought dried noodles, cooked
  • 4 ounces finely grated Parmesan cheese (1 1/4 cups)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Toss squash, oil, and 1 teaspoon salt on a baking sheet. Season with pepper. Bake until light gold and tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool.
2. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Combine ricotta, cream, yolks, mozzarella, and a pinch of nutmeg in a medium bowl. Season with salt.
3. Melt butter in a small saute pan over medium-high heat. As soon as it starts to sizzle, add sage, and cook until light gold and slightly crisp at edges, 3 to 4 minutes.
4. Place squash in a medium bowl, and mash 1/2 of it with the back of a wooden spoon, leaving the other 1/2 in whole pieces. Gently stir in sage-butter mixture and stock. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Spread 3/4 cup of ricotta mixture in a 9-cup baking dish. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread 1/2 of the butternut squash mixture over noodles. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread 1 cup of ricotta mixture over noodles. Repeat layering once more (noodles, squash, noodles, ricotta). Sprinkle Parmesan over ricotta mixture.
6. Place baking dish on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until cheese is golden and bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes. Let stand for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.