Butternut Squash and Basil Lasagna

My friend, Aparna, made this delicious lasagna for a dinner party last month. I was absolutely bowled over by the flavors and unique ingredients!

From Giada de Laurentiis' recipe with some modifications. I made the basil sauce by following the steps from Deb's smitten kitchen recipe.

For the Squash puree:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 lb butternut squash, I bought the cut and cubed one from Trader Joe's
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water

For the Basil Sauce:
2 tbsp butter
3tbsp all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk
Pinch nutmeg
3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves
Red chilli flakes, to taste

12 no-boil lasagna noodles
1/3 cup grated Parmesan

Directions:
In a heavy skillet, pour a turn of olive oil and add the butternut squash to it. Add salt, pepper to taste, and coat all the squash. Add the 1/4 cup of water, and cover and simmer on low for 20 minutes till tender. Mash coarsely with a masher or put it into a food processor to puree.

For the basil white sauce, in a pan melt 2 tbsp of the butter and add the flour. Stir constantly till the raw smell of the flour disappears, about 2 mins. Make sure to stir so that flour does not brown. Now add the hot milk and stir (best with a whisk) till the mixture begins to boil. Boil till the mixture thickens, about 4-5 minutes. Season with salt, nutmeg and red pepper flakes. Transfer half of this sauce to a blender and add 3/4 cup of basil leaves, and blend until smooth. Transfer this basil mix to the remainder of the white sauce to mix evenly.

Preheat oven to 375F. In a baking dish, grease sides generously and start layering your lasagna. Start with a layer of the basil sauce, a layer of the no-boil lasagna noodles, and then a layer of the squash mixture. Sprinkle a little cheese onto the squash layer (I did not put any cheese except on the top to brown). Layer this way until you end with a last layer of squash. Reserve 1/4 cup basil sauce to drizzle over the top along with some Parmesan cheese. Cover tightly with foil and bake at 375F for 40 minutes.

Serve with a salad!

Eggplant, Leeks and Zucchini white lasagna

I made this lasagna for our supper club meet, theme: Italian. It turned out really good and it was all gone by the end of the night - always a good sign :)

Original recipe: Whole Foods recipe - Eggplant and Artichoke white lasagna

Serves 4

3 cloves of garlic finely chopped
2 leeks, white and green parts chopped
Salt to taste
1 medium eggplant sliced into 1/2 inch. thick slices
2 medium zucchinis sliced
6-8 dried lasagna noodles

For the sauce:
1 tbsp butter
2 tbsps all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups low fat milk
1/4 cup grated parmesan reggiano
1/2 cup crumbled goat cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese

you can reduce the parmesan reggiano and mozzarella cheeses and substitute with leftover cheese wedges you'dlike to get rid of. Balance the flavors, so if you choose a sharper cheese like cheddar then balance it with extra goat cheese and mozzarella.

Preheat oven to 375deg. Heat oil and add garlic, leeks and salt. Cook until leeks are light brown about 5mins. Set the leeks aside.

Pour enough oil in a skillet until it is 1/4 in. deep. Add sliced eggplant in batches and fry until they are lightly browned. Drain on a plate covered with paper towels to absorb the oil. Sprinkle salt on both sides of the fried eggplants.

Cook lasagna noodles as per instructions on the package. Drain and set aside.

For the sauce, melt butter over medium heat.Whisk in flour and cook, stirring continously for about 30 sec. Slowly stream in milk and keep stirring until its well mixed. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally until the sauce thickens in about 3-4 mins. Add 2 tbsps of parmesan reggiano, goat cheese, salt, pepper and reserved leeks. Stir quickly and remove from heat. Continue stirring until the cheese melts and set aside.

Apply a light coating of oil in a 8-inch baking dish and spread 1/4 cup of sauce.Top with a layer of noodles. Layer with half the leeks, eggplants and zucchini, 1/2 cup sauce, and 1/2 cup mozzarella. Repeat until you go through all the ingredients. Top with remaining sauce, parmesan reggiano and mozzarella.

Cover with foil and bake for 30 mins. Then uncover and bake for 5mins. Let lasagna rest and cool for 5 mins after baking. Slice and serve.