Meatless Monday: Butternut Squash Lasagna

Miracles are not contrary to nature, but only contrary to what we know about nature. ~Saint Augustine

We take everything so seriously – as if the world turns on our scheming.

All our earnest planning is a talisman against the creative chaos of being that whips around our cornered selves.

If we just eat, do, buy, think the right things we can control that demon of random – our fearful, joyless vigilance will protect us.

But the miraculous spins out of the maelstrom.

Life bursts curled out of the cracks and crevices of the world.

This lasagna is a celebration of such exuberant anarchy: of tenacious squash tendrils unstopping and savoyed kale’s persistent unfurling.

The recipe looks time consuming, but is actually much simpler than it seems.

You can make any of the components in advance, and assemble the lasagna when you are ready.

Don’t worry about cooking the noodles – they will soften up as the dish cooks. (And don’t bother buying special ‘oven-ready’ noodles – regular noodles do just fine and will have  better texture.)

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Butternut Squash Lasagna

Prep Time

45 mins

Cook Time

1 hr

Total Time

1 hr 45 mins

 

This recipe looks time consuming, but it doesn't actually take that much time. You can prepare each of the steps (the squash, the kale and the white sauce) ahead of time, and then just assemble the dish when you are ready. You don't need to cook the noodles before you use them. They soften up as the dish cooks.

Servings: 6 servings

Author: Mary Gillespie

Ingredients

Butternut Squash FIlling:

• 4 cups cooked butternut squash 1 medium squash - see note
• 1 cup cooked red lentils
• 4 cloves roasted garlic
• 2 teaspoons dried sage
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Kale Layer:

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cups kale roughly chopped
• 1 medium onion finely chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon basil pesto

Sauce:

• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 cups milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried mustard

Additional Ingredients:

• 8 whole wheat lasagna noodles uncooked
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 cup grated Emmenthal

Instructions

Butternut Squash Filling:

1. In medium bowl, combine sqaush, lentils, garlic, sage, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir until thoroughly combined.

Kale Layer:

1. Heat a pan to medium hot and add oil. Add the chopped onion and salt. Cook until onion softens - about 3 mins. Do not let the onion brown. Turn down the heat if it starts to turn brown.
2. Add the chopped kale and cook until the kale begins to wilt and has reduced in volume. Remove from heat and stir in pesto.

Sauce:

1. Melt 1/4 cup of butter over medium low heat. Add flour and stir for a few minutes to cook the flour.
2. Add the milk to the saucepan, stirring to remove any lumps. Add salt, pepper and dry mustard and stir until the sauce has thickened. (Hint: if you warm the milk and stir constantly while adding it to the butter and flour mixture, the sauce will thicken much more quickly and only take a few minutes to make.)

To assemble the lasagna:

1. Spread about 1 cup of the squash mixture on the bottom of a 9x9 inch baking pan. Layer 4 lasagna noodles over the squash. Break the noodles to fit, and use the leftover bits to fill gaps.
2. Spread 1/2 of the remaining squash over the noodles. Spread all of the kale mixture over the squash. Pour half of the sauce over the kale. Sprinkle with the 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan.
3. Layer the remaining noodles over the Parmesan. Spread the remaining squash over the noodles. Pour the remaining sauce over the squash. Top with the grated Emmenthal. Cover the dish with aluminum foil.
4. Let the lasagna sit for at least 1/2 hour before baking. You can prepare the dish the day before serving and refrigerate until you are ready to bake it.

To bake:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Tent the aluminum foil over the lasagna to keep it from sticking to the cheese, and bake dish for 45 minutes to 1 hour. During the last 15 or 20 minutes, remove the tinfoil, and bake until the top is lightly browned.
2. Let lasagna sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Recipe Notes

To prepare the squash, preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cut squash in half and remove seeds. Place cut side down on baking sheet and bake for approximately 1 hour, until squash is soft and you can pierce it easily with a knife or fork.

When squash is cool, use spoon to scoop out the flesh.

While the squash is roasting, you can roast your garlic. Simply place a whole garlic bulb on a sheet of aluminum foil. Drizzle with a half teaspoon of olive oil and wrap foil over garlic so that it is completely covered. Remove from the oven when the squash is cooked.

To use the roasted garlic, simply squeeze the cloves to remove the garlic.