Butternut Squash, Ricotta & Sage Lasagne

📝 Ingredients

• 1 butternut squash (about 1.2 kg, giving 1 kg flesh)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 12 fresh sage leaves (8 for the squash, 4 for the top)
• 500 g ricotta (2 × 250 g tubs)
• 2 eggs
• 50 g grated Parmesan (20 for the ricotta, 30 for the top)
• 250 g dried no-precook lasagne sheets (about 14 sheets)
• 800 ml semi-skimmed milk
• 30 g unsalted butter
• 45 g plain flour
• Salt, black pepper, nutmeg

🍴 Utensils

• Oven
• Baking tray + baking paper
• Ovenproof dish, about 30 × 20 cm
• Saucepan
• Whisk
• Peeler

📖 Steps

1. Preheat the oven to 200 °C. Peel the butternut squash with a vegetable peeler, cut it in half lengthways, scoop out the seeds with a spoon, then cut the flesh into cubes of about 2 cm.
2. Spread the cubes on the baking tray lined with baking paper, add the whole unpeeled garlic cloves, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and toss with your hands. Roast for 30 to 35 min, until the squash is tender and lightly golden at the edges.
3. Meanwhile, make the béchamel: melt the butter in the saucepan over a medium heat, add the flour and whisk for 1 min without letting it colour. Gradually pour in the cold milk, whisking constantly to prevent lumps.
4. Cook the béchamel for 8 to 10 min over a medium heat, whisking often, until it coats the back of a spoon. Season with salt and pepper and grate in a little nutmeg. It should stay fairly runny: the dried sheets absorb liquid as they cook.
5. Take the squash out of the oven and turn the oven down to 180 °C. Squeeze the roasted garlic cloves to push out the soft flesh, add it to the squash with 8 finely chopped sage leaves, then mash with a fork to a rustic purée. Season with salt and pepper.
6. In a bowl, mix the ricotta, eggs and 20 g Parmesan with a fork until smooth and creamy, then season with pepper. Don't add salt: the Parmesan and béchamel are already salty enough.
7. Assemble the lasagne: a quarter of the béchamel in the bottom of the dish, a layer of sheets without overlapping, half the squash, a quarter of the béchamel, sheets, all the ricotta, sheets, the rest of the squash, a quarter of the béchamel, then a final layer of sheets.
8. Pour over the rest of the béchamel, making sure the sheets are covered right to the edges: any exposed lasagne sheet stays hard. Sprinkle with 30 g Parmesan and lay the 4 whole sage leaves on top. Cover with foil and bake for 25 min at 180 °C.
9. Remove the foil and bake for another 20 min, until the top is golden and a knife blade slides through the pasta without resistance. Leave to rest for 10 min out of the oven before cutting into 6 portions: the layers will hold together better.