Butternut Squash & Goats Cheese Lasagna

 

I am sharing a recipe for a lovely meatless lasagna with you today. Hello Meatless Monday!  This delicious vegetable lasagna is rich and so scrumptious that I can promise you that you will not miss the meat!

This recipe is for a fabulously tasty Butternut Squash & Goat's Cheese Lasagna. It makes a delicious use of the fresh Butternut Squash that becoming available to us at this time of year.  

I adore butternut squash. It is one of my favorite of the winter squashes.  Sweet and bright, it just lifts everything it touches! 

 

I just adore the Winter squashes, such as Butternut. These squashes differ from the summer squashes in that they have thick hard skins and are much better for storing over long periods of time.

Pumpkin is considered a Winter squash, along with Butternut, Hubbard, Sweet Dumpling and a host of others  They seem to be coming up with new varieties all the time.

Winter squash is a vegetable you either love or loathe I suppose. I am from the love it camp! Especially when I incorporate it into tasty hearty dishes such as the one I am sharing with you today!

 

WHAT YOU NEED TO MAKE BUTTERNUT SQUASH & GOATS CHEESE LASAGNA

Pretty simple ingredients for the most part, except for maybe the cheeses.  There are three different cheeses used, but what a beautiful combination! 

 For the Bechamel:

• 3 ½ cups (840ml) whole milk
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and bruised
• 1 thick slice of peeled onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 sprig of fresh parsley
• 3 ½ TBS butter
• 3 ½ TBS flour
• Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
• ½ tsp sat
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste 

 

For the filling: 

• 1 large butternut squash (about 3 pounds in weight)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 ½ TBS dried sage
• ½ cup packed fresh parsley leaves
• 2 TBS olive oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and finely diced
• 1 cup (115g) walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup (130g) grated gruyere cheese
• 3/4 cup (135g) freshly grated parmesan cheese
• ½ cup (120g) crumbled soft goat’s cheese 

You will also need about half a pound of fresh lasagna sheets.  I know this looks like a long list, but trust me when I tell you that every mouthful will be worth all of the extra work and ingredients! 

 

For something like this I like to grate my own cheeses.   I use my micro-plane grater for the Parmesan and a box grater for the Gruyere.  

I love Gruyere cheese. It has such a beautiful sweet nutty flavor that goes very well with the flavor of the squash!

The goats cheese is just crumbled. 

The most involved part of this recipe is making the Béchamel sauce.  If you can make a cheese sauce to make Macaroni and Cheese you can make a Béchamel! Its really very simple.  I share a very simple tutorial on how to do just that here!

The squash for this lasagna is pan fried in a skillet until lightly caramelized with onions garlic and fresh sage leaves before combining with chopped toasted walnuts. Toasting your nuts really helps to enhance their nuttiness. You can leave the nuts out if you are allergic or not a nut lover.

You could also substitute another kind of nut for the walnuts if you wish. Pistachios or Pecans both work very well.

As with any lasagna, once you have the sauce made and the filling ingredients combined,  it is as simple as layering everything up in a baking dish along with the cheeses.  Cook for a time covered and then finish off uncovered.

This really is delicious.  So rich and flavor filled. With plenty of texture. It is one of my favorite meatless lasagna's. 

With it's rich béchamel and those  three lush cheeses, not to mention that fabulously delicious butternut squash filling, this is a dish that will have even the carnivore's in the family coming back for seconds!

Admittedly there are some who must have meat. If you have some of those in your house, you may want to try these delicious meaty lasagna's! 

CHICKEN AND HAM LASAGNA -  Not your traditional lasagna.  Deliciously different and makes good use of leftover cooked chicken and ham.  Combined with a rich cheesy sauce and spinach, this always goes down a real treat! 

EASY HOMEMADE TRADITIONAL LASAGNA -  A good homemade Lasagna recipe should be a part of of every home-cook's repertoire!  Its something that is very easy to make, and which most people love to eat.  Italian comfort food at its very best. Its one of those things that can very easily be made up ahead of time and it freezes like a dream.  With tender pasta noodles, a deliciously meaty tomato sauce, a rich cheese filling and béchamel topping, this easy lasagna recipe has been a firm favorite in my home for many years.

Butternut Squash & Goats Cheese Lasagna

Yield: 6

Author: Marie Rayner

Prep time: 45 MinCook time: 1 HourTotal time: 1 H & 45 M

This delicious lasagna can be prepared right up to the point of baking a day ahead of time. Just cover and refrigerate until needed. This makes it a great recipe to use when you are entertaining.

Ingredients

For the Bechamel:

• 3 ½ cups (840ml) whole milk
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and bruised
• 1 thick slice of peeled onion
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 sprig of fresh parsley
• 3 ½ TBS butter
• 3 ½ TBS flour
• Freshly grated nutmeg to taste
• ½ tsp sat
• Freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the filling:

• 1 large butternut squash (about 3 pounds in weight)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1 ½ TBS dried sage
• ½ cup packed fresh parsley leaves
• 2 TBS olive oil
• 1 large onion, peeled and finely diced
• 1 cup (115g) walnuts, toasted and finely chopped
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup (130g) grated gruyere cheese
• 3/4 cup (135g) freshly grated parmesan cheese
• ½ cup (120g) crumbled soft goat’s cheese

You will also need:

• 1/2 pound fresh lasagna sheets

Instructions

1. First make the béchamel sauce. Put the milk, garlic, slice of onion, bay leaf and parsley sprig into a saucepan and slowly bring to a simmer. Cover and remove from the heat. Set aside for ten minutes to infuse the milk with the flavors of the aromatics.
2. Melt the butter for the béchamel in a saucepan and whisk in the flour. Cook, stirring, for about one minute.
3. Strain the milk and slowly whisk it into the saucepan until the mixture is smooth and beginning to thicken.
4. Reduce to a very low temperature and simmer for about 15 minutes until the flour is well cooked and the sauce is nicely thickened, stirring occasionally. Season to taste with ½ tsp salt, some black pepper and some freshly grated nutmeg. Set aside.
5. Peel the butternut squash and dice it into ½ inch sized cubes.
6. Chop two of the garlic cloves together with the parsley. Mix together with the sage.
7. Heat 2 TBS of the oil in a large skillet. Add the onion and chopped squash. Cook over medium high heat for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
8. Reduce the temperature to medium and cook for a further 10 minutes or so, until the squash is fairly tender and beginning to caramelize in a few spots.
9. Stir in the garlic herb mixture along with the chopped nuts. Cook for a few minutes longer and then remove to a bowl.
10. Preheat the oven to 375*F/190*C/ gas mark 5.
11. Butter a 9 by 12-inch baking dish.
12. Spread ½ cup of the béchamel in the dish.
13. Lay 1/3 of the noodles over top.
14. Cover these with half of the squash mixture.
15. Spoon over 1 cup more of the béchamel.
16. Sprinkle half of the gruyere cheese and 1/3 of the Parmesan cheese and ½ of the goat’s cheese.
17. Repeat layering one more time.
18. Place the remaining noodles on top (Third layer.)
19. Spread the remaining sauce over top and then sprinkle with the remaining Parmesan cheese.
20. Spray a sheet of tinfoil with some non-stick cooking spray and loosely tent the baking dish. Bake in the preheated oven for about half an hour.
21. Remove the foil and bake for 20 minutes longer until golden brown. Remove from the oven and let rest for about 10 minutes.
22. Cut into squares to serve.

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