Squash and Broccoli Rabe Lasagna

I found the greatest store on Murphy Road near me today.  It is called The Produce Place.  They had the dried morels and the crème frèche.  Happy as can be.  Tonight’s meal comes from the October Bon Appétit.  It was easy to cut in half and we have a lunch portion left over. The recipe I am writing below is for the full 10-12 servings.  As I look over the ingredients I find it amazing that mine tasted so good.  They listed the butternut squash as 2-2# squashes, so when I cut it in half, I used a pound not 2.  I forgot the crushed red pepper and the lemon zest.  In the end, I did not cut the Parmesan in half and put ¾ C on top the last lasagna noodles instead of 6 T.  I really need new glasses and hope to soon find someone that has decent frames. 

Ingredients for the Filling:

4 # of butternut squash

3T EVOO

Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

2 # broccoli rabe, tough stems removed

Crushed red pepper flakes

1# mozzarella, coarsely grated

1# whole-milk ricotta

1 C finely grated Parmesan

1 T finely grated lemon zest

2 t minced fresh sage

1 t minced fresh rosemary

Ingredients for Béchamel and Assembly:

¼ C unsalted butter

¼ C unbleached all-purpose flour

5 C half-and-half

1/8 t freshly grated nutmeg

1 bay leaf

Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper

1 # lasagna noodles

¾ C finely grated Parmesan cheese

Directions for the Filling:

1.      Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2.      Place squash and 3 T of EVOO in a large bowl; season generously with salt and pepper and toss to evenly coat squash. 

3.      Transfix to two rimmed baking sheets spreading out in a single layer, overlapping slightly.

4.      Roast until tender but not mushy, about 15 minutes.  Let cool.

5.      Quickly blanch broccoli rabe in a large pot of boiling salted water just until it wilts, 1-2 minutes.  Drain; briefly cool under running water. 

6.      Squeeze out excess water; coarsely chop and transfer to a large bowl. 

7.      Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes; drizzle with EVOO and toss to coat.

8.      Mix mozzarella and next 5 ingredients in a large bowl; season with salt and pepper.

Directions for Béchamel and Assembly:

1.      Melt butter in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat. 

2.      Add flour; stir until slightly thickened, 2-3 minutes.

3.      Increase heat slightly; slowly whisk in 5 cups of half-and-half, ½ C at a time, allowing béchamel to thicken between additions.  Add 1/8 t nutmeg and bay leaf. 

4.      Reduce heat to low and cook, thinning with more h&h if too thick, until sauce is a milk shake consistency, about 10 minutes longer.  Season to taste with salt and pepper.  Cover and keep warm, remove bay leaf. 

5.      Cook the lasagna noodles or in my case, I used no-cook noodles.

6.      Ladle about ¼ C sauce into a 13x9x2” baking dish.  (For half, use 9” sq.)

7.      Add a layer of needles, cutting to fill the bottom. 

8.      Layer 1/3 of the squash, 1/3 broccoli rabe and 1/3 the ricotta mixture randomly over the noodles.

9.      Top with sauce and repeat this process 2 more times topping with the sauce. 

10.  Finish with a layer of noodles and top them with remaining sauce and the Parmesan cheese.  (You can finish to this point a day ahead of time and chill until ready to cook.  Return to room temperature.)

11.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

12.  Bake uncovered until bubbly and starting to brown, 45 minutes. 

13.  Turn oven on broil.  Cook until browned and golden, 4-7 minutes.

14.  Let rest for 20-30 minutes before serving.

The resting helped a lot.  It came out of the pan beautifully.