There comes a point in every woman’s life when it’s time to put the big girl pants on and attempt to cook a recipe from Martha Stewart. And that’s exactly what I did recently when we had the neighbors over for din din (another benchmark to being all grownz up). Martha’s Butternut Squash and Sage Lasagna was the main dish (paired with a Tuscan Kale salad, thankyouverymuch), and what can I say, it was delish! Cheesy and bubbly with a nice golden brown crust. And even with it being a *gulp* Martha Stewart recipe, it was pretty easy to make. Ch-check it out:
Ingredients
- 3 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch pieces (I used three pkgs of butternut squash from the mecca that is Trader Joe’s)
- 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, (you will need only 1/2 of the batch), 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
- 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. (Again, I just threw in the packages one at a time and cooked for 11 minutes each. Be careful – the bags get super hot.)
- Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Combine ricotta, cream, yolks, mozzarella, and a pinch of nutmeg in a medium bowl. Season with salt.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
Now – what did the neighbors think? I think they dug it……………..
Happy cooking!
xoxo,
