Butternut Squash Lasagna!

So I had some friends coming over for dinner last week, one is a vegetarian while the rest of us are very much carnivores. I wanted to make something that didn't feel like she was being left out of the meal. Most of the time, vegetarians may feel like they can only eat sides since a main is usually meat-based. (We did have a little meat... the men made sausages for an appetizer) I got to thinking about this lasagna that my mom made for my birthday last year. Plus, its fall and who doesn't love butternut squash!

I got this recipe from Design Sponge by way of Pinterest. This is Brian Malarkey's recipe, and if you haven't been to his restaurant Searsucker in the Gaslamp district of San Diego I suggest you go. NOW! It was amazing, needless to say so was this lasagna.

Now let me forewarn you, this is pretty easy once you get the squash all cut! My sweet boyfriend took all these pictures on his iPhone as I was prepping. :)

The squash can be a challenge only because they are SO hard and no one wants to lose a finger! I suggest a mandolin if you have one. It will make this process so much easier. I don't, so I cut every piece about 1/4 inch thick. Multitasking was key, it allowed me to make the squash AND roast root veggies for my salad at the same time. Plus, it can be done hours ahead of time!

The squash, pre-roast. And a little Yuengling. 

 If you don't know what Yuengling is, then you must live on the West Coast. Let me tell you about this delicious little lager from one of the world's oldest breweries! They do not distribute anywhere on the west, so any time I (or anyone else I know) goes to the east coast, I bring it back (then introduce all my friends to it so they can suffer with me when it is gone...). This beer is pretty much perfect for an everyday, easy beer. Flavor profile is mellow, not super hoppy or bitter. Just, perfect. Maybe I should petition to get it out here!!

Cheese, and more cheese!!!

The finished product!

Roasted fingerling potatoes for my salad!

I wanted to make a salad to go along with the Lasagna. With all the cream and cheese in this dish, I thought a nice little roasted root veggie salad would be great. While I don't really have pictures, it's just a salad. The oven is already hot from the squash, why not roast some amazing veggies!? I took fingerling potatoes (I especially love the purple ones), parsnips and carrots, tossed in a little olive oil/salt/pepper combo. Beets I roasted separately because, a) they take longer and b) I didn't want all my veggies to turn pink. To my veggies I added mixed greens (baby kale, swiss chard and spinach), pomegranate seeds for a little texture, shaved grana padana for a little salt and a balsamic vinaigrette. EASY! 

The assembly.

I was too excited to eat.

All in all, it was a great night with some amazing people. Here is the breakdown of the recipes:

Mixed Root Veggie Salad

Serves 4 (depending on how much salad everyone eats!)

1 bag of mixed lettuces 

1 1/4 T Olive Oil

Salt and Pepper to taste

1 small bunch of beets

2 small parsnips

2 small carrots

8 baby fingerling potatoes

store-bought balsamic vinaigrette

shaved grana padana

pomegranate seeds

Pre-heat the oven to 375ºF. Peel the carrots and parsnips and cut into 1/4 inch chunks. Cut potatoes in half (they should be about the same size as the carrots) and toss those all in a bowl with some olive oil, salt and pepper. Place them on a baking sheet (I line mine with foil for easy cleanup). Roast for about 30 minutes then check for doneness.

For the beets, I just put them in a foil packet with a little bit of olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast those until a fork can be inserted and removed easily. 

Then combine all the rest of the ingredients in a bowl. 

SIMPLE! 

Butternut Squash Lasagna recipe can be found at Design Sponge. It calls for a sage-lemon sauce, but I thought with all the cheese and cream, it didn't need it. So to still get those flavors, I finely chopped about 5 sage leaves, sprinkled that over the top when it came out of the oven and finished it with a little fresh lemon juice to give it that brightness. It was perfect without the extra butter.