‘Tis the Season…..

…..of squash!  I’m so excited.  I love squash.  Butternut and Delicata are my two favorite but I do like a nice spaghetti or acorn as well.  Mmmm.  Creamy, rich and still a vegetable!  What could be bad?

As a result, I’m constantly looking for new recipes to go with the squash.  My standbys are soup and risotto.  This weekend I wanted something more.  I’ve had butternut squash lasagna before but wasn’t sure I wanted anything that heavy.  I read this blog on a free-style squash and goat cheese lasagna but I don’t love goat cheese.  So I decided to improvise and make a hybrid of the two.

Hybrid Squash Lasagna

Ingredients

1 butternut squash

1 box no-boil lasagna noodles

1 onion

olive oil

1-2 cups chicken or veg broth

1-2 cups light cream

grated parmesan and/or mozzarella cheese- how much?  up to you- how cheesy do you want this?  I probably used about 1-2 cups combined.

salt, pepper to taste

Directions:

I started by roasting my squash.  I cut it in half, scooped out the seeds and put it face down- skin side up- on a baking sheet with some olive oil, salt and pepper. It roasted at about 425 degrees for maybe 30-40 minutes.  And it filled the house with such a nice, squashy smell.  Mmmm.  I set it aside to let it cool.  Then I peeled it and threw it into the food processor, then into a medium sized pot.  I put it over low heat.

Meanwhile, I sliced up two onions pretty thinly (ok, I’ll admit it, I used the food processor.  I’m so lazy!) and put them in a saute pan with some olive oil over medium-low heat.

I let these sit over medium to low heat for a loooooong time.  Don’t let them brown up or burn but do let them cook down and get all caramelized.  You could help the process along by adding a teaspoon of sugar but there’s really no need- if you have the time, they’ll do their thing.  Cook them until they look like this:

Meanwhile, to the squash on the pot on the stove, whisk in about 1-2 cups of chicken or veg broth and about 1 cup of cream.  Let that all sort of melt and meld together. Season a bit with salt and pepper if necessary.

Once your onions are done, you could throw in a bit of Marsala to deglaze the pan.  I love Marsala and find it worked well with the squash- a sort of sweet and slightly acidic undertone. 

Ok, time to assemble.  Start by putting a bit of the squash sauce on the bottom of your pan.  Top with the lasagna noodles (I had to break mine up a bit to make them fit- It was not the best pan choice) and some of the cheese.

I had some fresh mozzarella to use up but regular would probably be just as fine. Add a layer of your delicious onions.

Cover with more noodles.

Then more squash sauce.

Repeat until you run out of ingredients or room.  Finish with a layer of sauce and some parmesan and mozzarella cheese on top.

Bake at 375 for about 30-50 minutes or until it’s all golden and bubbly around the edges.  Mmmmm.

This was good- rich, creamy and not as dairy-ful as others I’ve had.  A little bit lighter and more squashy, I think because the squash wasn’t diluted with the cream sauce.  Don’t get me wrong, I love me some good cream sauce, this was just a nice alternative.

And for the record, it’s taken me five days to write and post this!  Talk about a busy week!  Hopefully with an extra day off this week, I’ll be able to post something else.