Butternut Squash Lasagna – Sage, Prosciutto & Goats Cheese

Butternut squash lasagna made with roasted butternut squash, prosciutto goats cheese, ricotta, and crispy sage leaves. A wintery, indulgent comfort food dish that'll keep you cozy all evening. This white lasagna has quite probably been our favourite meal all winter. Be warned it is rich but it's SO DAMN good!

Did someone say it's healthy January?..

Ahem, ok we've pretty much failed at the first hurdle, last week we posted this winter salad recipe with Gorgonzola and now we've got a cheesy white butternut squash lasagna for you but can you blame us?

We mean, look at it.

Lasagna or lasagne (find out the difference here if you're curious) is officially our favourite meal, ever. Did we say that? Did we actually commit myself to having one favourite meal?. Let's say, right here, right now it is our absolute food heaven.

And we're kinda addicted.

Whether it's a classic meat ragu lasagna a vegetarian lentil lasagna or this butternut squash lasagna, there is something about the fresh pasta, layered with cheese and a tasty, bubbling filling that's irresistibly good.

So while everyone else is drinking smoothies and eating salads, we're pretty much sitting here with this guy.

Sage and prosciutto are one of our favourite flavour combos and they go perfectly with this cheesy butternut squash lasagna. You should also check out our prosciutto chicken involtini with spinach and ricotta if you're looking for a lighter meal packed full of flavour.

Making Fresh Pasta

Now we know it takes at least an extra half hour to make fresh pasta aaaand we know we ain't all got that extra time. We use fresh store-bought lasagna sheets all the time and seriously there is nothing wrong with it.

IF we have time we will make fresh pasta because we love making pasta, it's so much fun and honestly, there is a difference in the overall flavour of lasagna with homemade pasta and it is worth it.

How Many Lasagna Layers Do we Need?

When making lasagna you need to have a lot of layers. If you have three or four layers packed full of meat sauce or whatever filling you're using then the lasagna is going to collapse when you serve it and it will be so sloppy and messy with hardly any pasta.

You need around 6-7 layers of pasta. Don't worry about packing each layer with filling you don't need a lot and you want a good balance of pasta and filling. Remember to always leave more sauce for the final top layer so the pasta doesn't dry out and it's nice and bubbling when it comes out the oven.

How To Make Butternut Squash Lasagna – Step By Step

First, roast the butternut squash by removing the skin from the squash with a knife and roughly chop it into medium sized chunks. Add it to a large baking tray with the garlic cloves (skins still on), sprinkle over the oregano with a little salt and pepper and 1 tbsp of olive oil. Roast in the oven for 30-35 minutes until soft and cooked through.

Meanwhile, make the pasta or skip this step if using store-bought fresh lasagna sheets (use store bought for quickness). See the recipe card below for more details.

Remove the squash from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes. Squeeze the garlic out of their skins and mash the garlic and squash together with a fork (if there is a lot of liquid then try to drain as much as you can).

Next, grate the fontal or melting cheese of your choice and mix it with the ricotta in a bowl with half the nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pepper, set aside.

Now make a bechamel sauce with butter and Parmesan, see full instructions in the recipe card and an even more detailed description here. << You can also make bechamel sauce with olive oil here.

Time to layer it up…

Add a couple of spoonfuls of bechamel (white sauce) to the bottom of an oven proof baking dish and spread it out evenly. Next add a layer of pasta (either freshly made or fresh shop bought, cut to size). Add a spoonful of squash the spread it out over the pasta.

Next dot over some ricotta mixture, crumble a little goats cheese and tear over pieces of prosciutto. Finally, drizzle over some more white sauce and spread it over the toppings. Repeat this until all the ingredients are used up, keep a little extra bechamel for the final layer.

P.S We like to save a little extra prosciutto for the top because it looks pretty when it comes out of the oven and gives some texture. If you're doing this then add the prosciutto when the foil comes off the lasagna and it goes in for the second bake.

Cover the lasagna with tin foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5-10 minutes.

Finally, fry the sage leaves in 1 tbsp of olive oil for a few seconds, drain on kitchen paper then garnish the lasagna, serve.

More Comfort Food Recipes To Try:

• Parmigiana di Melanzane (Aubergine Parmigiana)
• Broccoli Rabe Ricotta Gnudi With Parmesan cream
• Pizzocchieri Pasta with Potatoes and Cabbage
• Mozzarella in Carrozza – Fried mozzarella sandwiches
• Baked Polenta with Beef and Sausage Ragu

Got a meal in mind you'd like to see? Let us know in the comments or send us an email using the contact form and let us know what you'd like to see on Vonfo.

Ingredients

Makes 4 -6 people

• 2.2 lbs (1 kg) butternut squash
• 5-6 garlic cloves
• 1/2 tbsp dried oregano
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 5.2 oz (150g) fontal (, or a good melting cheese such as fontina, gruyere or cheddar)
• 8.8 oz (250g) ricotta cheese (,good quality)
• 1.7 oz (50g) butter
• 1 heaped tbsp (30g) flour
• 2.5 cups (600 ml) milk
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• salt and pepper
• 1 tbsp freshly grated parmesan
• 3.5 oz (100g) goats cheese (crumbly kind not soft)
• 3.5 oz (100g) prosciutto crudo
• 5-6 sage leaves
• store bought fresh lasagna sheets enough for 6-7 layers OR follow ingredients below for homemade

To Make Fresh Pasta:

• 1 1/3 cup + 1 tbsp (200g) Italian 00 flour or all purpose
• 2 large eggs

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350F/gas mark 4.

2. Remove the skin from the squash with a knife and roughly chop it into medium sized chunks. Add it to a large baking tray with the garlic cloves (skins still on), sprinkle over the oregano with a little salt and pepper and 1 tbsp of olive oil. Roast in the over for 30-35 minutes until soft and cooked through.

Making Fresh Pasta

1. Meanwhile make the pasta or skip this step if using shop bough fresh lasagne sheets.

2. To make the pasta add the flour to a large mixing bowl or a large clean work surface and make a well in the middle. Crack the eggs into the well and whisk with a fork incorporating the flour slowly. Once the dough starts to come together begin kneading it with your hands.

3. Use extra flour as needed to dust the work surface and continue to knead the dough for 8-10 minutes until it's very smooth. Cut the dough in half, if there are tiny air bubbles inside then it's ready, if not continue kneading. Wrap the pasta dough in cling film and set aside.

4. Remove the squash from the oven and let it cool for 5 minutes. Squeeze the garlic out of their skins and mash the garlic and squash together with a fork. (If there is a lot of liquid try to drain as much as you can and avoid the liquid when adding it to the lasagna).

5. Next, grate the fontal or melting cheese of your choice and mix it with the ricotta in a bowl with half the nutmeg and a pinch of salt and pepper, set aside.

Make The White Sauce

1. Now make the white sauce, add the butter to a saucepan under a medium heat. Once melted, add the flour and stir into a paste. Cook the paste, stirring so it doesn't burn for 1 minute then add half of the milk while whisking constantly to avoid any lumps.

2. Once the sauce starts to thicken add the other half of the milk and whisk again until thick and creamy. Add the parmesan, pinch of nutmeg, salt and pepper and stir, turn off the heat once the parmesan has melted and set aside.

Roll Out Pasta

1. If using fresh home made pasta, roll it out at this point. You want pasta sheets long enough to fit your baking dish.

2. If using a pasta machine (easiest way) set the dial to the widest point (usually 0). Cut the pasta dough into 3 and feed the first piece through the machine. Fold one end of the pasta dough into the middle of the dough and the other end other that to create a third. Feed that through the machine once more. Repeat this 2-3 times then feed the dough through each number of the machine until you reach number 7 or 8 (the dough should be nice and thin). Repeat this with all 3 pieces of dough.

Assemble The lasagna

1. Add a couple of spoonfuls of white sauce to the bottom of an oven proof baking dish and spread it out evenly. Next add a layer of pasta (either freshly made or fresh shop bough, cut to size). Add a spoonful of squash the spread it out over the pasta.

2. Next dot over some ricotta mixture, crumble a little goats cheese and tear over pieces of prosciutto. Finally drizzle over some more white sauce and spread it over the toppings. Repeat this until all the ingredients are used up, you should have at least 5 or 6 layers. Make sure to keep a little extra white sauce for the final layer.

3. Cover the lasagna with tin foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let it rest for 5-10 minutes.

4. Finally fry the sage leaves in 1 tbsp of olive oil for a few seconds, drain on kitchen paper then garnish the lasagna, serve.

Kitchen notes

• We like to save a little extra prosciutto for the top because it looks pretty when it comes out of the oven and gives some texture. If you're doing this then add the prosciutto when the foil comes off the lasagna and it goes in for the second bake.