Dish | Roasted Squash Lasagna

I've been under the weather this week with an ongoing flu that has been straight-up kicking my ass. Each night I go to bed thinking, "I'm gonna feel great tomorrow!" which has definitely not been the case. After 3 days of eating the huge pot of chicken noodle soup I had made, my taste-buds (which were barely working) started craving something else. I saw this recipe on Foodess and instantly forced myself to get out of bed and take my sniffly and sick self to the grocery store. That turned out to be slightly painful as it was way too early for me to be out and about, but it paid off in the most delicious way when this bubbly and cheesy butternut squash lasagna came out of the oven. Definitely a keeper!

ROASTED SQUASH LASAGNA  |  Recipe inspired by Foodess

2 medium butternut squash (about 3 lbs), peeled and diced into 1/2″ cubes
3 tbsp olive oil
1 shallot, finely sliced
2 tbsp minced fresh sage leaves (or 2 tsp dried)
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup butter
1 shallot, minced
1/4 cup flour
4 cups milk
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg (or more to taste)
Salt and pepper to taste
1 box of no-boil lasagna noodles
2 cups grated mozzarella
2 cups ricotta cheese
1/2 cup grated fresh parmesan

1  |  To make roasted squash: Toss first 5 ingredients together and spread on a baking sheet. Bake at 400°F for about 35 minutes, until squash is tender and browned, and shallots are caramelized. Set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F.

2  |  To make sauce: Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add shallot and saute 2 minutes. Add flour and whisk to combine; cook 1 minute. Slowly whisk in milk. Cook, stirring regularly, until thickened – about 5 minutes. Add nutmeg, and season well with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low, and continue to stir occasionally as you prepare the lasagna.

3  |  Spread about 3/4 cup of white sauce in the bottom of a 9×12″ baking dish. Top with lasagna noodles, then another 3/4 cup (approximately) of sauce. Sprinkle with half of the roasted squash and one-third of the mozzarella, then another layer of noodles. Top second layer of noodles with white sauce and the ricotta cheese. Add another layer of noodles, white sauce, the remaining squash, and another third of the mozzarella. Top with a final layer of noodles, white sauce, the remaining mozzarella and the parmesan cheese. Bake 30 minutes or until cheese is bubbling and golden brown.

Dish | Stuffed Baked Apples + Autumn Pizzas

I am on a roll with all of this seasonal cooking lately! Ryan and I had a perfect day on Sunday: a trip to the hardware store, sandwiches at Hazel's Kitchen, redecorating our bathroom, and a final stop at the grocery store to pick up ingredients for a few Autumn inspired recipes I have been wanting to try.

BAKED APPLES STUFFED WITH NUTS, HONEY & GINGER

1/3 cup almonds, toasted, chopped
1/3 cup pecans, toasted, chopped
1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/4 teaspoons finely grated orange zest
1 1/4 teaspoons ginger zest
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 tablespoon chilled butter
4 large Fuji apples
1/4 cup apple juice
Vanilla Greek yogurt

1  |  Toast almonds and pecans over medium-high heat for 2-4 minutes; allow to cool before chopping. Combine nuts, brown sugar, honey, orange and ginger zest in small bowl. Mix in whipping cream. Let sit until sugar dissolves and filling thickens, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.

2  |  Preheat oven to 350°F. Using small sharp knife and starting at side of apple at center point, cut around each apple to make slit in skin to prevent bursting. Using small end of melon baller, scoop out core and all seeds to within 1/2 inch of bottom. Place apples upright in 8x8x2-inch glass baking dish. Spoon filling into hollow of each apple. Mound remaining filling on top of each apple. Pour apple juice around apples. I added a tablespoon of fresh orange juice too. Butter large sheet of foil. Loosely tent dish with foil, buttered side down.

3  |  Bake apples until barely tender, about 1 hour. Uncover and bake until apples are very tender and sauce is bubbling thickly, about 20 minutes longer. Transfer apples and sauce to bowls. Serve with yogurt.

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Some of you might remember a post I did about pizzas back in May (please refer to that post for directions). Pizza is a fun thing to make at home because it allows you to use whatever ingredients you want to experiment with. For this particular round of Autumn inspired pizzas, I went with a Caramelized Onion, Wild Mushroom & Rosemary Pizza with White Wine Sauce and Mozzarella + a Roasted Butternut Squash & Sage Pizza with Fontina. Sorry I'm not doing a full post about these guys, I just felt like sharing.

Dish | New York Steak with Mushrooms & Red Wine Sauce + Crusted Butternut Squash

In my last post, I mentioned my love of all things Autumn. We so rarely eat red meat at our house but with the start of the new season and Ryan being consumed by school already, I thought it would be nice to relax and have one of those special occasion kind of nights, just for us.

NEW YORK STEAK WITH MUSHROOM & RED WINE SAUCE

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
Assorted mushrooms, cut into large pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
2 New York steaks
2 minced garlic cloves
1 sprig rosemary
1/2 cup dry red wine
1/3 cup low-sodium chicken stock
1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon

1  |  Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms; cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden, about 5-7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to a bowl; set aside.

2  |  Melt 1 tablespoon butter with remaining 1 tablespoon oil in same skillet over medium heat. Season steak with salt and pepper. Add steak, garlic, and rosemary to skillet. Cook about 5-7 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer to a cutting board. Let rest while preparing sauce.

3  |  Discard garlic and rosemary from skillet. Add wine; cook, stirring up bits, until reduced to 1/3 cup, about 3 minutes. Stir in stock; bring to a boil. Simmer until reduced to 1/4 cup, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; Whisk in 1 tablespoon butter. Stir in mushrooms and 1 tablespoon tarragon. Season with salt and pepper.

4  |  Spoon mushroom mixture onto plates. Serve steak over mushrooms.

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CRUSTED BUTTERNUT SQUASH  |  Recipe inspired by Sprouted Kitchen/Plenty by Yotam Otteleghi

1 butternut squash (about 2 lbs.)
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg
1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
1 minced garlic clove
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley
1/4 cup fresh thyme leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1  |  Preheat oven to 400°F. Peel the squash; Slice it in half length wise and discard the seeds. Cut into 1/4” slices.

2  |  On a baking tray, pile the squash, drizzle the olive oil and the nutmeg and toss everything to coat evenly. All should have a thin coat of oil, amount may vary based on size of the squash. Spread them out in a single layer on the baking tray. In a food processor pulse together the breadcrumbs, parmesan, garlic, both herbs, a few pinches of salt and a lot of fresh black pepper.

3 |  Sprinkle the topping on the squash. Bake for about 25-30 minutes until the tops are browned and the squash is cooked.