Squash Ricotta Pasta Bake

It's autumn! That means it's time to feast on freshly harvested root vegetables. My personal favorite is butternut squash. It's sweet, but goes very well in savory dishes.  I found a recipe in a BBC Good Food magazine and decided to completely change it to make it more palatable and healthier.

This dish turned out very well. The English do know how to make a great pasta bake that isn't necessarily Italian in taste. We ate this with a nice little side salad as a fall weeknight meal.  I personally loved it.

Squash Ricotta Pasta Bake

Ingredients:

10 ounces butternut squash pre-cubed
6 ounces light sour cream mixed with three tablespoons of milk
2 ounces grated parmesan cheese
8 ounces part-skim ricotta cheese, mixed with three tablespoons of milk
Small bunch of sage leaves, half of them chopped
2 lightly sauteed shallots
6 fresh lasagna sheets (or boiled dry ones)
2 tablespoons onion powder
1 tablespoon garlic powder
black pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Dash of grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Method:

Step 1: Microwave squash for 5 minutes, allow to cool and preheat oven to 425 degrees
Step 2: Mix sour cream and half of parmesan and set aside
Step 3: Mix ricotta, chopped sage, black pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, nutmeg, paprika, shallots and cayenne, and remaining parmesan, then fold in squash until mixed together
Step 4: Cover bottom of 8 x 8 pan with just enough sour cream mix, then top with 2 lasagna sheets, and add half of ricotta and squash mix, then add more sour cream, repeat once more and keep a bit of sour cream mix reserved
Step 5: Top last 2 lasagna sheets with sour cream mix, then top with sage leaves and bake in oven for 25 minutes