Sandi is blogging from the WhistleStop Cafe kitchen. It's all about good home cooking; food, family and fun. Thousands of posts . . .

~In the south and around the world.



Sunday, April 18, 2010

Sunday Slow Suppers~ Pasta

This weeks Sunday Supper is Pasta. It was Nancy's turn to name her favorite pasta. Luckily she didn't choose any plain lasagna, she picked a Butternut Squash and Leek Lasagna. I love trying something new!
The hardest part of this whole recipe is the prep... First, cleaning and dicing the leeks. You have to be careful, just when you think they are clean. Look again! Grating the butternut squash is a chore, watch your knuckles on that!
Squash & Leek Lasagna
10 ounces lasagna noodles, preferably whole-wheat
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 large or 5 medium leeks, pale green and white parts only, thinly sliced and washed thoroughly (about 6 cups)
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups nonfat milk
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
2 2-pound butternut squash, peeled, halved, seeded and grated using the large hole side of a box grater
6 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano, grated using the large hole side of a box grater
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook noodles until not quite al dente, about 2 minutes less than the package directions. Drain; return the noodles to the pot and cover with cool water.
Melt butter in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add leeks; cook, stirring often, until softened, about 6 minutes. Sprinkle flour over the leeks; stir well. Cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Whisk in milk in a slow stream and cook, whisking constantly, until thick and bubbling, 8 to 10 minutes. Whisk in thyme, salt, nutmeg and pepper. Remove from the heat.

Assemble lasagna in the prepared baking dish by layering one third of the noodles, one third of the sauce, half the squash, one third of the cheese, half the remaining noodles, half the remaining sauce, all the pine nuts, all the remaining squash, half the remaining cheese, all the remaining noodles, all the remaining sauce and all the remaining cheese. Cover with parchment paper then foil. Bake the lasagna for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake until bubbling and lightly browned, 30 to 45 minutes more. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving (or follow make ahead instructions). Make Ahead Tip: Bake, let cool for 1 hour, cover with parchment paper then foil and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat, covered, at 350°F for 1 hour, then uncovered for 30 minutes more.

Next time I am using frozen butternut squash, the kind that is peeled and diced... that would cut out 75% of the work. Thanks Nancy!

Y'all enjoy~
Sandi

2 comments:

Holledayz said...

IN Canne, enjoying sunshine, long train trek home tomorrow....enough vacation with AWC

Sandi @the WhistleStop Cafe said...

Holly~ I can't wait for this blog post!

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