Recipe – Idiot-proof Roasted Squash and Mushroom Lasagne

This WAS meant to be up for National Vegetarian Week last week, but, well – it wasn’t! It’s a great recipe I’ve made several times, and have played about with the quantities to get it spot on! I’ve called it idiot-proof because it’s very simple (if a little time-consuming) to make – there’s no need to fuss over a perfect white/cheese sauce, the cottage cheese is fantastic. Also for a decent taste, use an extra mature cheddar on top, it will crisp up nicely.

It produces 4 decent sized servings, it’s best to make it in a dish around 10″ x 8″ – I used this one which is roughly the right size, you can go bigger, but the you’ll have to adjust the quantities accordingly.

Serves – 4
Prep / Cooking time – 20mins / 1hr30mins

Roasted Squash and Mushroom Lasagne
Ingredients
Olive Oil
2 tsp Dried Thyme
1 tsp Dried Parsley
1 tsp Dried Oregano
10 Sage Leaves (finely chopped)
2 Bay Leaves
Clove of Garlic (finely chopped or pressed)
1 Medium Butternut Squash (Chopped in medium chunks)
1 Medium Onion (diced)
1 Red Pepper (finely chopped)
1 Green Pepper (finely chopped)
200g Button Mushrooms (chopped into quarters)
2 Tins of Chopped Tomatoes
100g of Tomato Puree (approx. half a tube)
450g of Cottage Cheese
200g Grated Mature Cheddar
Pack of Pasta Sheets

Method

1. Roast the Squash Chunks in Oil, 1tsp Dried Thyme and Garlic for about 30 mins until golden.

2. Drain the oil from the roasting tin and set the Roasted Squash to one side.

3. Fry the onions, peppers and mushrooms on a medium heat in a little oil until soft and golden.

4. Add the Tomato Puree, mix well and cook for 5 minutes.

5. Add the Thyme, Parsley, Oregano, Sage and Bay Leaves along with the tinned tomatoes, season with Salt and Pepper.

6. Bring the heat up and stir it until it starts to bubble.

7. Bring the heat down and allow to simmer for about 30 minutes – keep an eye on it to ensure it doesn’t catch.

8. Remove the Bay Leaves and gently fold in the Roasted Squash to the mixture.

9. Put your oven on to 180°C / Gas Mark 4 and grease the dish.

10. Line the bottom of the dish with the pasta sheets – break them up so they fit if need be.

11. Put a layer of your Roasted Squash and Mushroom mixture on top of the pasta sheets – roughly a third of it.

12. Put blobs of Cottage Cheese on top of the mixture, and smooth it over into a layer.

14. Repeat again – a layer of pasta, mixture, and cottage cheese.

15. For the final layers – pasta, mixture, cottage cheese and then ALL the Cheddar!

16. Bake in the oven for 45 mins to an hour, check the sheets are cooked before serving though.

17. Serve with some crusty bread, or perhaps a salad.