BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND SPINACH LASAGNA

Delicious vegetarian lasagna recipe that uses vegetables (butternut squash, spinach), and three cheeses (Ricotta, Mozzarella, and Parmesan)! Perfect as a veggie main dish for each day.  Healthier version of lasagna.  

This delicious veggie lasagna recipe is healthy, meatless, gluten-free friendly, and excellent for the autumn and Winter season. Because it uses butternut squash, it’s an excellent choice as holiday vegetarian main dish or simply a vacation recipe.  It’s so good, it’s fashionable kids!

BUTTERNUT SQUASH AND SPINACH LASAGNA

To me this is often an excellent recipe to form any time of year, but because this lasagna has butternut squash, it's surely an honest holiday veggie main dish for Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year’s Eve.

This vegetarian recipe uses butternut squash puree, which you'll easily make by following my easy step-by-step tutorial: the way to make butternut squash puree. Or, you'll always buy pureed butternut squash at the shop.

INGREDIENTS :

Butternut Squash Filling:

• 1/2 cup milk or more, if needed
• 2 cups butternut squash puree (about half of squash)
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/4 teaspoon salt plus 1/8 teaspoon more
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Spinach Filling:

• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 1 cup mozzarella cheese
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 8 oz spinach (1 cup cooked spinach)
• pepper to taste

Other Ingredients:

• 1/4 teaspoon Paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon Basil
• 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese or more
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese on top
• 1/4 teaspoon Italian seasoning
• 10 oz lasagna noodles cooked (for gluten free, use Tinkyada brown rice lasagna noodles)

INSTRUCTIONS :

1. Preheat oven to 375 F.

Butternut Squash Filling:

1. For this filling, you will need to have pre-cooked butternut squash puree. Using food processor, combine 2 cups of butternut squash puree with Ricotta cheese, milk, salt and nutmeg. Add more milk if needed (to make the butternut squash filling very creamy). Mix very well, taste and add more salt, if needed.

Spinach Filling:

1. Combine spinach, Ricotta cheese, mozzarella, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix, taste, and add more salt and pepper, if needed.

Cooking lasagna noodles:

1. Bring a very large pot of water to boil, and cook lasagna noodles according to package instructions. Rinse in cold water, drain. Using knife, trim noodles to fit your baking dish (if necessary).

How to assemble vegetarian lasagna:

1. Prepare a baking dish - I used a casserole dish 11 inches x 8.5 inches x 3 inches deep. Grease the lasagna dish lightly with olive oil spray. Spread 1/3 of butternut squash filling on the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle lightly with mozzarella cheese. Top with cooked lasagna noodles without overlapping (I used 3 noodles).
2. Spread half of spinach filling over the noodles. Top lightly with Mozzarella cheese. Top with cooked noodles.
3. Spread another layer (1/3) of butternut squash mixture, then sprinkle lightly with Mozzarella cheese. Top with cooked noodles.
4. Spread the remaining half of spinach filling over the noodles. Top lightly with Mozzarella cheese. Top with the final layer of cooked noodles.
5. Spread a generous amount of butternut squash filling (the remaining 1/3) over this final layer of noodles, sprinkle with grated Parmesan and remaining mozzarella cheese (about 1/2 cup of mozzarella). Generously sprinkle the cheese with Italian seasoning, paprika, basil.
6. Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 30 min. Remove foil and bake additional 10 minutes.

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