Vegetarian Lasagne
Written by Rachel, Posted in Cheese, Dinner, Eggs, Fruit, Herbs, Main Dishes, Pasta, Roasting, Vegetables, Vegetarian
I think that homemade pasta is one of the most rewarding things to eat. Maybe after baguettes… maybe tied. In any case, gosh it’s good. Every time I make it I swear that I’m never buying pasta again (and then I totally do). Since homemade lasagne is one of Tim’s favorite meals, I know that I’ve always got a winner on my hands when I combine the two.
If you’re not quite up to the homemade pasta challenge, that’s totally fine. But, if you are, I used a recipe from Alana Chernila’s cookbook, The Homemade Pantry. It turned out great. In the past, I’ve used another recipe that called for waaaaay more eggs. I thought that this one tasted just as good, and it only called for three eggs. Winner.
Making homemade pasta is a seriously time consuming task. It’s well worth it though. It was nice to be forced to do just one thing. To stand and wait for the pasta to roll through the attachment that I have for my KitchenAid. How often am I still, just listening to the food as it’s being shaped? Not often enough.
Maybe because I was already tuned in, I noticed the way the sage popped and crackled after I took it out of the pan of hot browned butter.
Things like this make my heart a little bit lighter.
Once the pasta was rolled out and drying, once the sage was cooked and set aside, fresh greens were chopped up for the tomatoey sauce. Tons of greens. I used chard, collards, and white choi. Any greens that you have on hand will do just fine.
Now, here’s where I need to make a small note. I used diced tomatoes in the greens. My preference would be tomato sauce. But, since I’d already spent like five hours on the dish at this point, I didn’t want to take an extra ten minutes to blend the tomatoes. Tim didn’t mind them diced though. So, just a note that you could do it either way, and I think it would be great. Ok? Ok.
I roasted some butternut squash. This recipe needs about the equivalent of one large squash. I had two on the counter, so I roasted them both at the same time. One for this dish, another to go in the freezer for another time. The squash is mixed with some salt and pepper. Easy.
I went simple when it came to the cheese in this dish. You could also add mozzarella or ricotta (or both!), if you want to. I’m not usually opposed to more cheese, ever. But, parmesan is what I had in the fridge, and I’m trying to be better at using what we have on hand.
I let the pasta dry while I cooked up the tomatoes and greens. Then, once everything else was ready, the pasta got a quick dunk in some boiling water. Just for a minute, if it’s fresh pasta (if you’re using store bought, follow the instructions on the package).
And finally, assembly time (which means closer to eating time). Greens in the bottom, noodle, squash, cheese, repeat. I made two individual ramekins for dinner, and then a loaf pan sized one to put into the freezer for another day. You could also make an 8x8ish pan and I think the amount of ingredients would come out about the same.
The lasagne is served topped with those crunchy sage leaves and a squeeze of lemon.
Happy Eating!
Ingredients
- 1 t olive oil
- 1 butternut squash, halved, seeds removed
- 10-12 lasagne noodles, fresh if you have them
- 2 T butter, divided
- 8 sage leaves
- 6-8 C greens (any greens will do: chard, collards, red or white choi, bok choy, kale, spinach, Tokyo bekana, mizuna...)
- 3 cloves garlic, diced
- 1 T balsamic vinegar
- 2-3 C diced tomatoes (or 3 C tomato sauce)
- to taste salt
- to taste pepper
- pinch cayenne
- 1 1/2 C parmesan cheese, grated
- lemon slices, for serving
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 350F. Drizzle squash with olive oil. Place cut side down on a baking sheet. Roast for 60 minutes (or until flesh pierces easily with a fork). Scoop out flesh and mix with some salt and pepper.
- While squash roasts, heat skillet over medium heat. Add 1 T butter. Fry sage, 1 minute per side. Remove from skillet and set aside.
- Add 1 T butter to the sage skillet and turn the heat down to medium-low. Add greens, salt, and pepper. Wilt down, turning often, for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more. Add balsamic vinegar and cook for 1 minute more. Add tomatoes through cayenne. Increase heat to medium and simmer for about 5-10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning if needed.
- Par cook lasagne noodles in boiling salted water for about 1 minute (fresh) (or according to package directions for store bought). Remove with a slotted spoon and spread out on a plate.
- In a greased 8x8 or 9x9 oven proof pan (or 2 individual ramekins and 1 loaf pan), spread a bit of the tomato mixture on the bottom, top with a noodle, a scoop of squash, and some cheese. Repeat 4 or 5 times, or until pan is full or ingredients are gone, ending with squash and cheese.
- Bake for about 30 minutes.
- Serve topped with crumbled sage leaves and a squeeze of lemon.
