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Squash and Fennel Lasagna For Two

A delicious, vegetable based lasagna with a secret sauce.
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Main Dish
Cuisine: Italian, vegetarian
Servings: 4 servings
Author: LydiaF

Ingredients

For the sauce

  • 2 cups whole milk
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 medium onion or 1/2 a large onion cut into large pieces
  • 1 celery stalk cut into large pieces
  • A few black peppercorns
  • 4 tablespoons butter (a half stick)
  • 4 tablespoons all purpose flour (one quarter cup)
  • 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard or to taste
  • salt and pepper to taste

For the lasagna

  • 2 cups winter squash cut into small cubes
  • 1 large garlic clove finely chopped
  • 2 - 3 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves use less is you have dried thyme
  • 1 medium fennel bulb a little bit larger than a fist, trimmed and sliced thinly
  • 1/3 cup blue cheese, goat's cheese or cream cheese (I used goat cheese and felt it took over, use your best judgment)
  • As many ready to cook lasagne sheets as needed to make two layers in your baking dish prepared according to the package directions
  • 1/2 cup grated cheese (two nice handfuls) (I used a pasta blend)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • olive oil as needed

Instructions

  • Bring the milk, onions, celery, bay leaf and peppercorns to a simmer over medium heat. Remove from the heat and let stand until ready to make the sauce.
  • Meanwhile, prep the veggies.
  • Drizzle the squash with olive oil and roast in a 350°F/180°C oven until tender, about 30 minutes. Toss with the garlic and thyme leaves. Season with salt and pepper, set aside.
  • Alternatively, saute already prepared squash in a little olive oil along with the garlic until heated through. Add the thyme, season with salt and pepper, set aside.
  • Saute the fennel in a little olive oil until tender and beginning to change color, about 20 minutes. Set aside. You can do this on top of the stove while the squash is roasting to save some time.
  • If using ready to cook lasagna noodles, start soaking them now. Prepare an 8 or 9 inch square baking dish or equivalent with baking spray and make sure the oven is heated to 350°F/180°C
  • Strain the veggies and seasoning from the milk. Reheat the infused milk in order to make it easier to prepare the sauce.
  • Melt the butter in a sauce pan and add the flour. Cook for a few minutes to allow the flour to cook though. Reduce the heat if necessary to prevent overcooking.
  • Add the milk a cup at a time, stirring well each time to prevent lumps. Stir in the mustard and continue to simmer and stir for several minutes until the sauce has thickened. Sometimes it takes a while. The sauce should cling to the spoon, but still be pourable. You can add more milk to thin it out or cook it longer to thicken it up.
  • Now you're ready to assemble the lasagna.
  • Spoon about 1/3 of the sauce over the bottom of the dish and arrange a layer of lasagna noodles over top.
  • Cover the noodles with the squash, a handful of grated cheese and another 1/3 of the sauce.
  • Add another layer of noodles followed by the fennel and the blue cheese and the rest of the sauce.
  • Top with another handful of grated cheese.
  • Bake for 20 - 30 minutes until the lasagna is warmed through and bubbly.