Lasagna with Butternut Squash and Hazelnuts

​Lasagne with Butternut Squash and Hazelnuts 

This vegetarian lasagna is a dish with an incredible combination of flavors. 

When I first came to this country many years ago, I left a family, a home, a scholarship, and many friends behind in Germany. There were times when I just wanted to go home and I knew it I could because of my grandfather. My grandfather was a wonderful man who I loved dearly. Two world wars had taken his only son, his wife and several of his brothers. His gentle soul poured all the love he had into me when I was born. We all lived together in one large farmhouse. As a baby, he carried me when he thought I was not comfortable. As I grew up, he took me everywhere, holding my hand. I have a picture of the two of us all dressed up going to a garden show. There is this giant of a man in riding boots and little me holding his hand and smiling. He never learned to drive a car, but he took his horse and carriage to the neighboring town to deliver eggs to his customers. I came along whenever I could. These were old-fashioned grocery stores and some private customers. 
I remember getting the best dill pickles or candy from his customers. He was an extremely proud man: when he said something, it meant something. Many evenings I went to a woman who sold beer and beverages in our village and got him one bottle of beer. Yes, kids in Germany were allowed to carry alcohol. That same woman also had a machine to seal cans of cooked meat and vegetables. The only time he got mad at me was when he saw me in a very short mini-dress. He didn’t like that at all. I can just imagine how sad he was when I immigrated to the United States. He went to a travel agent and asked her how much a return ticket from the States to Germany would cost. He gave me enough money to return to Germany if I had to. He gave me some other money too, but this amount he said I should always keep in case I wanted to come home. And my grandfather did not have a lot of money. So, I kept that money for a long time, and when I was really homesick, I knew I could go home whenever I wanted to.

The backyard of our farm in Germany

Recently, I had a wonderful visit from my niece and her boyfriend and both of them got to choose their favorite food. My niece chose butternut squash lasagna and her boyfriend picked meatloaf. We had such a good time together, and I hated to see them go. We remembered stories from my mother, how she encouraged my niece, who was her granddaughter. I made this lasagna several times for parties (and my vegetarian friends) and it always gets rave reviews. The recipe is from an old issue of Gourmet Magazine.

This is a delicious lasagna with a white sauce, where all the flavors come together nicely and create a memorable meal.  It takes some time and work but you can make it ahead of time and it is well worth the effort. I serve my lasagna with a nice salad and a seasonal vegetable like  roasted asparagus or brussels sprouts.

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

Serves 8-10

​The Squash  Filling

1 large onion, chopped
3 TBS butter
About 3 lb butternut squash, peeled,
seeded, and cut into ½ inch pieces
1 tbs minced garlic
1 to 2 tbs salt
1 tsp pepper
2 TBS chopped flat - leaf parsley
2 TBS chopped fresh sage
1 cup hazelnut, toasted and skins rubbed off

The Sauce

6 ½ cups of milk
7 TBS flour
4 TBS butter
1 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp salt
1 ½  tsp pepper
2 bay leaves
½ tsp fresh ground nutmeg

The Lasagna

1 lb. of fresh mozzarella , coarsely grated
1 ½ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1 cup of mixed grated cheese ( Monterey Jack and cheddar)
12 oz.  no boil lasagna noodles 
        or fresh pasta sheets

Directions:



​The Squash Filling

Toast the hazelnuts in a preheated oven at 375° for 10 to 15 minutes. Put the hot hazelnuts in a dish towel and rub vigorously to remove as much black skin as possible. Not all the skin will come off,  return the nuts to the oven and bake for a while longer. Rub them again in a towel. Leaving some skin is ok. Chop the hazelnuts coarsely. Make a a little more than a cup because you will want to nibble on some while you cook.

Melt the butter in heavy deep skillet and sauté the onion over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 10 minutes. Add squash, garlic , salt and pepper and cook for 15 minutes stirring occasionally. You want the squash to be soft but not mashed. Remove from heat and add nuts, parsley and sage.




​The Sauce

Melt butter and add garlic, cook over medium heat for a minute, add the flour and whisk for 3 minutes. Do not let the roux turn any color. Slowly add about a cup of milk, whisking until smooth, add the rest of the milk in a stream whisking constantly until it comes to a boil. Add bayleaves and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring often to prevent burning. Add more liquid if you want the sauce to be thinner. Whisk in salt , pepper and nutmeg to taste. 


The Lasagna
Preheat the oven to 425˚ degree Fahrenheit.  
Toss the the cheeses together. Spread 1 cup of sauce on the bottom of a greased 13-by 9- by 2- inch baking dish and cover with 4 pasta sheets. Spread with 1 cup of sauce and one third of filling, then sprinkle with a heaping ½ cup of cheese. Repeat layering 2 more times , beginning with pasta sheets and ending with with cheese. Top with remaining 3 pasta sheets , remain sauce and remaining cheese.

Tightly cover baking dish with buttered foil and bake Lasagna in a middle of the oven for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake  for another 10 to 20 minutes until until golden brown and bubbling. Let lasagna sit for 10 minutes before serving.  I bake my Lasagna with a cooking sheet or some foil on the bottom of the oven to catch any spills.  

Guten Appetit
Recipe by Epicurious
adapted by ©sunnycovechef