Mary Berrys Butternut Squash Spinach Lasagne Food

CARAMELISED SQUASH & SPINACH LASAGNE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Tip the squash and garlic into a large roasting tin or dish (you can use the same one to assemble the lasagne to save on washing-up - ours was 35 x 40cm and 5cm deep). Tear over 4-5 sage leaves, drizzle with the oil and season well, then toss to coat. Roast for 40-50 mins, moving the squash around once or twice, until soft and caramelised. Squeeze the garlic from the skins and mash with the squash, leaving a few chunky bits for texture.
• Meanwhile, make the white sauce. Melt the butter in a large saucepan, and stir in the flour to make a sandy paste. Splash a little milk into the pan, stirring continuously to prevent lumps. Keep adding more milk, a little at a time, until the paste thins to a smooth, creamy sauce and the milk has all been used. Simmer for 1 min more. Stir in the mascarpone and half the parmesan. Season well and grate in a generous amount of nutmeg.
• Tip the spinach into a colander and pour over a kettleful of boiling water to wilt (do this in batches). Once cool enough to handle, squeeze the spinach over the colander to remove the water, then season and roughly chop.
• Remove half of the crushed garlicky squash from the roasting tin and set aside on a plate. Spread the remaining squash out over the base of the tin or dish you intend to serve the lasagne in. Ladle over about a quarter of the sauce, then top with a single layer of lasagne sheets, snapping them to fill any gaps. Make an even layer of spinach on top of the pasta, and top with another quarter of the sauce, more pasta, squash, sauce, pasta and finally the remaining white sauce.
• Scatter over the remaining parmesan, the mozzarella and pine nuts. If the oven is off, heat to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and cook the lasagne for 30 mins. Rub a little extra oil over 5 or 6 sage leaves, place them on top of the lasagne and return to the oven for another 15-20 mins until golden and bubbling. Leave to cool for 5 mins before serving.

BUTTERNUT SQUASH LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat an oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Place squash, cut-side up, on the prepared baking sheet. Cover squash with aluminum foil.
• Bake in the preheated oven until squash is tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes.
• Heat 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir mushrooms and garlic in the hot oil until mushrooms are tender, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.
• Heat remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil in a separate skillet over medium heat; cook and stir onion in the hot oil until softened, about 5 minutes. Add spinach to onion; cook until spinach is heated through, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat.
• Heat 6 cups milk in a 5-quart saucepan over medium heat; cook and stir until milk is simmering, about 5 minutes. Whisk remaining 1 cup milk and cornstarch together in a bowl until smooth; stir into simmering milk. Bring milk mixture to just under a boil, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon and scraping bottom of pot to prevent scorching, until milk mixture has thickened into a sauce, about 5 minutes; remove pot from heat.
• Whisk 1 1/2 cups Parmesan cheese, honey, nutmeg, sage, salt, and pepper into sauce until smooth. Cover pot with a lid and keep warm over low heat.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until cooked through but firm to the bite, about 8 minutes. Drain.
• Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
• Scrape flesh from butternut squash into a bowl; stir with a fork until evenly mashed. Stir ginger, salt, and pepper into mashed butternut squash.
• Spoon about 1 cup white sauce into the bottom of a 9x13-inch baking dish; arrange a layer of noodles atop white sauce. Layer 1/2 butternut squash mixture, 1/5 remaining white sauce, noodles, spinach mixture, 1/5 white sauce, noodles, 1/2 the mozzarella cheese, mushroom mixture, 1/5 white sauce, noodles, remaining 1/2 butternut squash mixture, 1/5 the white sauce, remaining noodles, remaining 1/5 white sauce, remaining mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, respectively. Cover dish with aluminum foil and place dish on a baking sheet.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake until bubbling and cheese is browned, about 15 more minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.