7
Serves:
6
Prep time:
30 mins
Cooking time:
approx. 1 hr 15 mins (This includes cooking the
meat sauce and oven baking)
Ingredients:
2 small butternut squash (or 1 large squash)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp tomato puree
500g lean beef mince
200g mushrooms, thinly sliced
400g tin good quality chopped tomatoes
1 tsp red chilli paste
1 tsp sugar
A few fresh basil leaves, finely chopped, plus extra to garnish
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 x 150g mozzarella balls, drained and thinly sliced
150g ready-grated mozzarella
Butternut squash lasagne
Method:
1.
In a large frying pan, heat up the olive oil. Add the onion and
garlic to the pan and fry over medium heat for 5-6 minutes until
softened. Add paprika and tomato puree and cook for a further
1-2 minutes.
2.
Add the mince to the pan and fry over high heat for 5-6
minutes until browned, breaking up any lumps with a spatula
and add the mushrooms and cook for a further 3-4 minutes
then stir in the tinned tomatoes, chilli paste and sugar and bring
to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for a further 10-12
minutes, adding the chopped basil in the last 2 minutes of
cooking. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground
black pepper.
3.
Meanwhile, peel the butternut squash and cut into 6-7cm
long chunks. Using Zyliss SmoothSlizer sheet blade, spiralise
the squash into long sheets. Cut the sheets to the width of
your ovenproof baking dish (we used a 22 x 28cm dish). The
bulbous part of the butternut squash with soft core and seeds
won’t spiralise due to its soft core. Don’t discard it – just dice
this part of the squash after you’ve removed the seeds, to roast
it and serve as a side with lasagne– see Tip below. Preheat the
oven to 395F/200C/180C fan /Gas Mark 6.
4.
Place a layer of the squash sheets at the bottom of the dish
so they slightly overlap each other. Cover with half the mince
mixture (ensure you’ve covered all the squash and there are no
gaps) and dot half the sliced mozzarella on top. Repeat with
half the remaining butternut squash sheets and the rest of the
mince and sliced mozzarella to make a second layer. Top with
the rest of the butternut squash sheets and scatter over the
grated mozzarella (ensure you cover all of the squash). Bake
in the preheated oven for 40-45 minutes until the top is golden
and bubbling. Serve garnished with basil sprigs and with the
roasted squash.
Tip:
The squash that you diced earlier – place in a roasting
dish, sprinkle with smoked paprika, season with salt and
freshly ground black pepper and drizzle with a little olive
oil. Roast alongside the lasagne for 25-30 minutes until
tender and golden.
