Butternut squash and Kale Lasagna

I hadn't made lasagna in a while, so I wanted to try a new recipe. I found this excellent recipe from my Mom's recipe treasure, and I surely wasn't disappointed. I was afraid the butternut squash would end up being too sweet so I balanced it by making the tomato sauce extra spicy and the bitter kale works well with the sweet butternut squash as well. I also added almonds to add some crunch. Turned out fabulous.


Recipe adapted from Sunset magazine's recipe

1 medium butternut squash
9 sheets wheat lasagna pasta
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic
2 cans diced tomatoes
paprika and chili powder to make it spicy
thyme or sage
1 can riccotta cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 cups chopped almonds
nutmeg
black pepper
crushed pepers

1. Chop onions and garlic and sautee until soft. Add the tomatoes; spice it up with some chili powder and crushed peppers and cook for about 30 minutes.
2. Chop up the butternut squash into 1 inch cubes. Marinate in thyme and olive oil and bake at 350 F until the butternut squash is soft. Puree the butternut squash to make a fine paste.

3. Cook the Kale and chop up finely.

4. Cook the lasagna pasta and set aside.
5. Mix the riccotta cheese with 1 cup mozzarella cheese and nutmeg. Add in the chopped almonds and mix.

6. Arrange layers of tomato sauce, butternut squash paste, kale and the riccotta mixture. Top off the a generous layer of the 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350 F.