Lasagna - Zucca Brutta (Ugly Pumpkin)
Ingredients
Red Sauce
Pumpkin Mix
Cheese Mix
Assembly
Instructions
- 1
Place pumpkin puree in a fine sieve over a bowl and set aside to drain while you make the sauce.
- 2
Heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in medium pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until translucent (6-7 minutes). Add garlic and cook until fragrant (2 more minutes).
- 3
Add sausage and cook until brown, breaking it up with a wooden spoon. Pour in the wine and cook until reduced by half.
- 4
Stir in the tomato sauce and herbs and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Season with salt and pepper; cover and reduce the heat to low. Simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- 5
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add lasagna noodles and cook as label directs. Dip in cold water and drain. Toss with remaining 1/2 Tbsp of oil to keep from sticking.
- 6
In a bowl, mix the drained pumpkin puree with the egg and season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.
- 7
In a separate bowl, mix 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese with all of the ricotta and pecorino romano cheeses.
- 8
Preheat oven to 350°F.
- 9
In a greased 9x13 inch baking dish, build your lasagna in the following layers:
- 10
Bake uncovered at 350°F for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly. Let cool at least 15 minutes before slicing.
💡 Cook's Notes
If using pork instead of Italian sausage, add spicy heat by cooking it with some cracked red pepper flakes. This recipe fits fully into large red lasagna pan. If you are making noodles ahead of time, you can place them in layers, separated by oiled wax paper or cellophane wrap. Alternatively, cook and then halt cooking by dumping them into ice water. An alternate easy way to make red sauce: Buy a tall plastic container of Jimmy's Homemade Marinara, one small can of tomato paste, 1 spaghetti sauce dry mix. Mix paste, dry mix, 1 cup water, 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil together; then add to marinara and mix all together. Voilà! If you buy a standard (big) box of Barilla curly-edge lasagna pasta noodles, you'll only use 12 strips max. Save all others for a smaller lasagna later on. See also: Lasagna, Squash (in Documents) <!-- TODO: LINK TO 'lasagna squash' -->
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