Butternut Squash Lasagna

About This Recipe

Butternut squash acts as a lower carb replacement to noodles in this dish that is rich in flavor and highly palatable.  This recipe works great outside of meal prep as well!

Ingredients

• 1 large butternut squash
• 1 lb ground beef (85/15)
• ½ lb Italian pork sausage
• 14 oz can petite diced tomatoes
• 6 oz can of tomato paste
• ½ lb sliced mozzarella cheese
• ¾ cup shredded parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper
• 1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
• 8 oz spinach
• 2 eggs
• 2 Tbsp dried parsley
• 2 Tbsp dried basil
• 1 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 Tbsp garlic

Instructions

1. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and brown the sausage and ground beef with 1 Tbsp of garlic.
2. While cooking the meat, peel the squash and cut into sheets ¼” thick. I like to cut off the bulbous portion and cut the top first as it makes for better “noodles”.
3. Once the meat has browned, drain half of the fat and add the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 Tbsp parsley, 2 Tbsp basil, and 1 tsp of salt. Stir to incorporate and reduce heat to low. Allow it to simmer for 30 minutes.
4. Preheat your oven to 350°F.
5. If your bag of spinach is microwave safe, pierce it with a fork and microwave for 3 minutes. Once cooked, chop it into small pieces and allow to cool.
6. In a large bowl mix together the spinach, 1 cup ricotta cheese, ¼ cup parmesan cheese, 2 beaten eggs, and salt and pepper.
7. Coat a 13”x9” baking dish with olive oil and add one third of the meat mixture to the bottom.
8. Add a layer of squash sheets on top of the meat and season the squash lightly with salt and pepper.
9. Spread ½ of the ricotta and spinach mixture over the top of the squash.
10. Place half of the sliced mozzarella cheese over the ricotta.
11. Start the process again, spreading ½ of the remaining meat over the cheese, followed by the squash, ricotta mixture, and mozzarella cheese.
12. Top the pan with the remaining meat and ½ cup of parmesan cheese.
13. Bake for 45-60 minutes. The lasagna is finished cooking once you can easily insert a butter knife anywhere in the pan.
14. This recipe makes 6 servings. Cut the lasagna into 6 pieces and put 1 piece in each of your containers.