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Butternut Spinach and Sage Lasagne with Ricotta

A recipe for a delicious Butternut, Sage, Spinach and Ricotta Lasagne
Print Recipe
Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine Italian
Servings 6 people

Equipment

  • 1 Stand mixer optional
  • 1 Pasta machine/roller optional

Ingredients
  

Pasta Dough (optional)

  • 300 g flour 00 preferable
  • 3 eggs, large
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Roasted Butternuut

  • 2 whole medium butternut, peeled and sliced
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • ½ tsp nutmeg, ground
  • 1 tsp cinnamon, ground
  • 1 tsp brown sugar
  • 1 large bunch fresh sage, rinsed *keep 9-12 large leaves of similar size aside 20g

Béchamel

  • 80 g butter, salted
  • 80 g flour
  • 1250 ml milk
  • 2-3 bay leaves
  • 1 cinnamon quill

Ricotta mixture

  • 1 tub fresh ricotta cheese, drained 250g
  • 1½ tsp lemon zest or to taste
  • ¼ tsp nutmeg
  • ½ cup grated parmesan
  • 1 tbsp olive oil

Final steps

  • 400 g baby spinach, rinsed
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup grated cheddar cheese or cheese of choice
  • ½ cup grated parmesan

Instructions
 

Fresh Pasta Dough

  • Place the flour in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Make a well in the centre and add the eggs and olive oil to the well.
  • Place the mixer on the lowest/ stir setting. The dough hook will gradually incorporate the flour into the dough.
  • After 5-6 minutes, the dough should be coming together. Depending on the size of your eggs, it may need a small amount of water if it's a bit dry. Add a small amount of water 1tsp at a time down the side of the bowl. Give the dough a minute to come together after each teaspoon is added.
  • Once the dough has formed into a single ball around the dough hook, continue on a low/medium speed for another 3 minutes to knead the dough.
  • Form the dough ball into a round, flat disc shape. Cover in clingfilm and leave to rest for 30 minutes.
  • Divide the dough into four equal pieces. Roll out one piece at a time, dusting lightly with flour. Keep the remaining dough covered in clingfilm until use. Cut the rolled out sheets to fit your baking tin/ dish.

Roasted Butternut

  • Preheat oven to 180℃ (350℉).
  • Peel butternut. Slice in half and deseed. Slice into thin discs. Toss with olive oil, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar, salt and pepper and place onto a lined baking tray.
  • Top with the sage leaves and roast in the oven for 20 minutes or until the butternut is soft and golden brown. Keep the oven on to bake the lasagne.

Béchamel

  • Place the milk, bay leaf and cinnamon quill in a saucepan over a low-medium heat. Bring to scalding (small bubbles should appear on the edges), stirring occasionally to prevent catching and a skin forming on the top. Take off the heat and cover.
  • In a medium-sized saucepan, melt the butter on a medium heat. Stir in the flour, nutmeg and season with salt and pepper.
  • Sauté until the roux slightly lightens in colour, stirring to ensure it doesn't catch.
  • Remove the bay leaf and cinnamon quill from the warmed milk. Pour into the roux slowly, mixing with a whisk.

Ricotta mix

  • Add all the ingredients for the ricotta mix to a medium bowl and mix to combine.
  • Stir in ¾ cup of béchamel. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Spinach

  • Briefly sauté the spinach in a pan with a drizzle of olive oil for a few minutes until bright green in colour. Sauté in batches if necessary.

Final Steps

  • Cover the bottom of your baking dish with béchamel.
  • Layer the lasagne as follows:
    1. Butternut, sage leaves and ricotta mixture
    2. Pasta
    3. Spinach and béchamel
    4. Pasta
    Repeat above three times, or as much as ingredients allow
  • Top the last layer of pasta with béchamel (ideally you want a generous layer of béchamel on top). Sprinkle over the cheeses and top with sage leaves.
  • Bake at 180℃ for 30 minutes until golden brown. Rest for 15 minutes before serving.