Friday, February 8, 2013

Roasted Butternut Squash Ricotta Sauce


This sauce is the boss. (That phrase has to have a copyright. Hmph. There's a sauceboss and bosssauce. I'll let them sort it out...)

The lasagna that cradled it was good too, but the sauce. Guys, I've been dreaming about it. I licked the blender that I made it in. I dipped day-old kale chips in it. (And gave it to my baby boy so he could sip it in a tiny cup. Shhhh.)

And although I haven't tried it, I really think it could work veganized too (replace the ricotta with soaked, blended, raw cashews and up the spices).

The best part of it all? It was super-simple to make.

I love when that happens.

Roasted Butternut Squash Ricotta Sauce in Gluten-Free Lasagna
makes about 4 cups


For the sauce

2 cups roasted butternut squash (using defrosted or boiled squash would work too here; it just won't have that sweet, roasted flavor)
2 cups part-skim ricotta cheese
1 tablespoon fresh sage (if dried sage, use less)
salt, pepper to taste (I used about 3/4 teaspoon each)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesean cheese
2 tablespoons to 1/4 cup milk, depends on how thin you want it (I used whole milk)

Place the butternut squash (sans skin), ricotta cheese, sage, salt, pepper, garlic powder, parmesean cheese and milk in a blender and blend (start on a low setting and work your way high) until it's nice and smooth.

The lasagna


1 box Tinkyada gluten-free lasagna noodles
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups ricotta
1/4 - 1/2 cup gluten-free breadcrumbs

If you want to put yours in lasagna, here's how I made mine: I used Tinkyada gluten-free lasagna noodles (I like their pasta best so far), followed the directions on the package for cooking, then layered it in an oiled 9x12 inch glass pan, placing three noddles down, then the sauce, then dollops of ricotta cheese until I was out of noodles, then I covered the top with more sauce and gluten-free breadcrumbs and cooked at 350 degrees, covered with foil, for 45 minutes. I then took the foil off and let it bake for another 15. Let it rest out of the oven for at least 10 minutes before serving.

3 comments:

Betsy said...

So hungry now!!! Love pasta and butternut squash together. I will try to veganize this recipe. I grew up hating dairy and now understand that my hate was driven by undiagnosed lactose intolerance.

I make nut cheese regularly and it is super easy. I'll let you know if it turns out. :)

Liz said...

Me too Betsy! It's one of the world's great combinations (the savory's world's peanut butter and chocolate in my opinion). Please do let me know if nut cheese works with it. When I've made nut cheese in the past, it always seems to turn out ricotta-like, so I think it could work here.

Marlow said...

I have never cooked with butternut squash!