I swear this isn’t a food blog but I am going to disprove that by posting about food again. It’s food I made for a knitter, if that brings it back on topic. Even if it doesn’t, I made a butternut squash lasagna today.
There were two actually, this one is the one I kept for my family. I gave the other one to a fellow knitter who had twins four weeks ago. I think meal trains instead of baby showers are the best idea ever, in case anyone ever asks you. Food showing up twice a week for about six weeks after my second son was born was the best thing ever!
Here’s the recipe for the lasagna, in case you need some butternutty, cheesey, béchamelly goodness in your life. And really, who doesn’t?
Butternut Squash–Fontina Lasagna
1 medium sized butternut squash
2 lb Italian Fontina, cut into slices (I usually use about half this)
Grated Parmesan
No-boil lasagna noodles
4 cups béchamel sauce (see recipe below)
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut the squash in half lengthwise. Place on lined baking sheet, cut side down. Bake until soft, approximately 45 minutes at 375°-400°.
When the squash is very soft, remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. When cool enough to handle, scrape the flesh from the skin and place in bowl.
Run the lasagna rectangles under cold water then make a layer of them in a baking dish. Dot the cooked squash on top of the pasta layers. Drizzle a healthy amount of béchamel over all. Add a sparse dotted layer of fontina, then sprinkle grated parmesan. Continue layering in the same fashion until you have two to three layers of squash, fontina, béchamel and parmesan. End with a layer of pasta, béchamel and parmesan.
Bake covered at 375° until hot through. Remove foil and let top layer color until golden brown.
Béchamel Sauce
Makes 2 cups
Double recipe for the lasagna
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups hot milk
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the flour and stir to form a smooth paste. (Those angled wooden spatulas are great for this because you can really scrape the bottom of the pan and prevent burning.) Heat the milk in a separate saucepan or the mcrowave.. When it is hot but not boiling pour it into the roux ( the butter-flour mixture), stirring constantly with a whisk. Make sure you get into all the edges of the pan to coax all the roux into the milk. Cook over low heat until the sauce thickens and the flour taste is gone. Add salt and pepper to taste.
the sheep free knitter 