Butternut squash lasagna just might be even better than your regular lasagna recipe. The sweet squash balances out the tang from the zing of tomato sauce. The best part about this recipe is that you will get a huge serving of vegetables and you don't have to boil lasagna noodles to make it. You'll get in a ton veggies and feel wrapped up in the blanket of comfort food.
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What You Get From This Lasagna Recipe
Butternut squash lasagna has all of the traditional flavor from slow cooked browned meat, melted cheese, and flavorful tomato sauce. It's a great way to get your kids to eat a double serving of vegetables without a fight. Since you don't have to boil noodles in batches, you can prepare your sheets of butternut squash all in one shot for an easy weeknight meal. Its one of my go-to recipes for a warm family dinner that everyone loves. It's even special enough to make for a nice holiday meal with extended family.
Simple Butternut Squash Lasagna Ingredients
We just need a few simple ingredients to get this recipe going. You can certainly add more vegetables like onion and spinach. See my recipe modifications below. I like to keep this recipe simple for my family, and these five ingredients do just that.
- Butternut Squash
- Provolone Cheese or Mozzarella Cheese
- Parmesan Cheese
- Jarred Tomato Sauce
- 1 Pound Sausage or ground meat
Helpful Tools For This Recipe
- Mandolin - this is really helpful for slicing butternut squash sheets to a consistent thickness
- Vegetable Peeler
- Baking Dish
- Cast Iron Pot - or large skillet. I just love my cast iron for its even temperature control.
- Small Baking Dishes - if you want to make individual lasagnas these are so cute and also good for individual pot pies or cobblers
- Meat Masher - It just makes the meat browning process quicker and less work on your arms. It's the best $5 gadget ever
Prepping Butternut Squash For Roasting
Heads up, you'll need a mandolin. The hardest part of this recipe is slicing the butternut squash. First, I cut off the top and the bottom bulb of the squash. Then, I peel it with a vegetable peeler. Next, slice it to ⅛" on a mandolin. You'll end up with a massive pile of squash circles. We are going to bake them with a light drizzle of olive oil and a pinch of salt. I like to line my baking sheets with parchment beforehand because it makes clean up easier, but that's optional.
Butternut Squash Lasagna Assembly and Baking
We have choices. You can make this in one large 8x8 casserole dish or you can make individual servings as pictured above. Either way. It all tastes the same. Once your dish is assembled, bake them at 375F for 20 minutes. No matter what, they will be screaming hot when they come out of the oven, so give them a few minutes to cool before you dig in.
- Start by placing a large pan over medium-high heat to brown the sausage. Use a meat masher to break up the sausage if you have one.
- After the sausage has browned, drain the excess fat and set it aside until you are ready for assembly.
- Prepare the butternut squash by peeling and slicing it as mentioned above. Roast the sliced squash in the oven at 375F for 20 minutes.
- Now, you are ready to layer your lasagna. Start with a layer of red sauce in the bottom of the baking dish.
- Next, layer the browned sausage, provolone or mozzarella cheese, and tomato sauce. Repeat with another layer of squash, meat, cheese, and sauce.
- Finally, fish the top layer with more sauce, sliced cheese, and add some grated parmesan or even pecorino romano if that's what you have on hand.
- Cover the baking dish with aluminum foil and place the whole thing i the oven at 375 for 20 minutes.
- Remove the foil and cook for another 10 until the cheese is golden brown and bubbly.
- Allow it to cool for a few minutes before using a sharp knife to cut into and serve.
What to Serve With This Lasagna
I love this recipe with a crisp green salad. I have a favorite Italian chopped salad that works so well with this recipe. Another great choice is a caesar salad. Lastly, broccolini with a hint of fresh lemon juice and black pepper is also fantastic.
Recipe Modifications
I definitely keep this recipe simple because that's how my family likes it. But, you should add anything else that you are craving in your butternut lasagna.
- Ricotta cheese- creamy ricotta cheese is one of the classic lasagna ingredients and you may have to have it in your lasagna. Combine 2 cups of ricotta with one egg and mix until its totally combined. Layer the ricotta mixture in to replace one of the layers of provolone cheese.
- Mozzarella cheese- if you don't have provolone and want to substitute mozzarella, just add one cup mozzarella per layer of lasagna.
- More veggies - if you want to make this a vegetarian lasagna you can definitely substitute the meat for a mushroom filling and add in some fresh spinach as well.
- Caramelized onions are another delicious add in. The sweet flavor from the onions brig the flavor right up.
Can I Make Butternut Squash Lasagna Ahead Of Time?
You can make this up to a day in advance. Just cover the assembled baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerated until you are ready to bake it. It will need a extra 10-15 minutes of cook time if you put it straight in the oven from the refrigerator.
Saving Leftover Lasagna And Reheating Instructions
These leftovers are my favorite! A big piece of this lasagna is just as good the next day as it was last night. Just transfer the leftover lasagna to an airtight container or cover the baking dish that its in tightly with plastic wrap.
Reheat it in the microwave for 2 minutes on medium heat.
More Comfort Food Favorites
Butternut Squash Lasagna Recipe Card
Butternut Squash Lasanga
Equipment
- mandolin
- baking dish
- pan
Ingredients
- 1 Butternut Squash
- 1 lb Jimmy Dean All Natural Sausage
- ¼ cup Pinot Grigio
- 2 cups Victoria marinade sauce
- 8 slices Provolone cheese
- ½ cup Shredded Parmesan cheese
- 1 tablespoon Olive oil
- ½ teaspoon Salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F.
- Cut off the top and bottom bulb of butternut squash. Peel the outside with a vegetable peeler and use a mandolin to slice butternut squash into ⅛” slices.
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper if desired.
- Spread the butternut squash slices out onto two baking sheets. Lightly drizzle the butternut squash with olive oil and very lightly sprinkle with salt.
- Bake butternut squash circles at 375F for 15 minutes.
- While the butternut squash bakes, heat a pan or skillet on medium high. Brown the sausage. Drain the fat. I use a turkey baster to remove the excess fat.
- Add ¼ cup wine and stir. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the tomato sauce and cover with a lid. Reduce heat to medium-low and cook for 15 minutes.
- Once the sauce and butternut squash have cooked, get your baking dish ready to assemble. Start with a little sauce in the bottom of your dish. Layer the squash, overlapping slightly if using one large baking dish. Next add meat sauce, a layer of cheese, squash, and so on for 3 layers. Top with parmesan cheese.
- Place baking dish or dishes on a baking sheet in case the sauce bubbles over to protect the oven from a mess.
- Bake assembled lasagna for 20 minutes at 375F.
- After 20 minutes, take out of the oven and let cool for 10 minutes before cutting into.
Notes
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe? Tag me on Instagram @fancy_apron 🙂 or leave a comment below.
Melissa Edwards says
Made this tonight after saving it from the Cedar Park community magazine. Smash hit!!! I love it better than lasagna noodles as it keeps its shape with every cut of the fork.
Alexis says
That's what I love to hear! Thank you so much!
The Neighbors Need to try this says
You had me at lasagna... and then you swept me off my feet at butternut squash !!! Gluten free!!