Skip the Turkey for Thanksgiving - Nu Origins Magazine

This Thanksgiving set the turkey aside for your carnivorous family and friends and make this meatless delicious Lasagna as your main dish. It’ll be a delight for everyone sitting at the table whether they eat meat or not.

Ingredients

For the Filling

2 large butternut squashes (about 2 pounds each), halved lengthwise and seeded
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
2 1/4 cups finely grated Parmesan cheese (about 8 ounces), plus more if needed
1/2 cup finely crushed amaretti cookies, plus more if needed
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh sage, plus more if needed
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, plus more if needed

For the Bechamel

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
6 cups whole milk
Coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Directions:

Make the filling: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Drizzle squash halves with oil and season with salt and pepper. On a rimmed baking sheet, roast the squashes, cut sides down, until tender and browned for about 1 hour. Let cool. Scoop flesh from skins, and puree in a food processor until smooth

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Continue to cook until browned and fragrant for about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl.

Combine 3 cups squash puree, 1 cup Parmesan, 2 tablespoons plus 1 and a 1/2 teaspoons amaretti cookies, sage, browned butter, 1 teaspoon salt, and nutmeg in a bowl. Adjust seasoning as desired with more Parmesan, amaretti cookies, sage, salt, and nutmeg.

Make the bechamel: Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour. Reduce heat to low, and cook, whisking often, for 3 minutes (do not let flour brown).

Meanwhile, bring milk to a gentle simmer in another small saucepan over low heat. Gradually whisk hot milk into the roux, whisking constantly to prevent lumps from forming. Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt and nutmeg. Raise heat to medium, and bring to a boil, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking, until thickened, about 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low, and cook until the raw flour taste is gone, 5 to 10 minutes more. Season with 3/4 teaspoon salt.

Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees. Assemble the lasagna: Coat bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with a thin layer of bechamel (about 1/2 cup). Arrange two 8-by-21-inch sheets cooked pasta on top, barely overlapping, to cover bottom and sides of dish. (Edges of pasta should hang over sides by about 2 inches.)

Top with 3/4 cup squash filling, and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon amaretti cookies. Top with 1 sheet of pasta (fill in any gaps with pieces of another sheet if needed), trimming edges as needed so that pasta fits neatly in the dish.

Top pasta with 3/4 cup bechamel and 2 tablespoons Parmesan. Continue layering in the same order (pasta, squash and amaretti, pasta, bechamel, and Parmesan) until you reach the top of the dish, ending with 1 sheet of pasta (you may need to fill in gaps with pieces of another sheet; you should have 10 layers of pasta). Fold in the overhang from the first layer of pasta to create a package. Trim pasta sheets as needed to prevent too much overlap, then spread remaining bechamel over top.

Bake, covered with parchment-lined foil, for 20 minutes. Uncover, and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan. Bake until top is browned, about 35 minutes more. Let cool slightly before serving.