Winter Squash Lasagna with Kale, Sage, and Caramelized Onions

Pre-heat your oven to 350 once your sauce, onions, noodles, are prepared

For the Béchamel sauce:
2-3 T olive oil
3 T flour
3 c milk
30 or so fresh sage leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 t dried rosemary
2 cloves garlic, minced

Warm the oil in a small pan. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk together. Whisk in the milk 1/2 cup at a time and allow the mixture to thicken slightly. Reduce the heat to low and add the sage leaves and rosemary. While this is infusing, sauté the garlic briefly in a little olive oil, and then scrape every bit of it into the sauce. You can either leave it on very low heat or turn the burner off while you do the rest of the prep.

For the fillings:
1 large onion, sliced
1 bunch kale, chopped
olive oil for the pan
salt

In the same pan you used for the garlic, heat a bit more oil and add the onions, stirring to coat. Sprinkle with a little salt. Let the onions cook very slowly and stir frequently. When they are full of caramel goodness, add the kale and two tablespoons (or so) of water. Cook until the kale is bright green and wilted and the onions are as done as you’d like them to be.

1-2 pounds of baked/roasted winter squash
1 -15 ounce tub of ricotta (I used part-skim)

puree the squash using whatever equipment you like–I used an immersion blender. Add half the ricotta and mix together. Either salt or pepper to taste, or leave this plain, depending on your reaction to the side note below.

Side note: at this point in the prep I had a moment of reckoning. The squash by itself was perfect, sweet and delicious; with ricotta added, it was starting to taste like pumpkin cheesecake, and I sampled a lot more than was strictly necessary. I didn’t add anything else to the squash mixture because I thought if there was some left over, it would become scones or muffins or something with a ginger snap crust. As it turns out, I have 2 cups in the fridge. That’s just a tip from me to you, if you have more like 2 pounds of squash and a sweet tooth.

1 lb.  lasagna noodles, boiled in salted water, follow package directions
1 half pound of good smoked Gouda cheese shredded
half a brick of firm tofu (optional)
Ricotta
1 t dried sage
1/2 t dried thyme
Pepper
Mix about half the shredded Gouda with the remaining ricotta. Mash the tofu and combine well. Add spices and stir.
To build the lasagna:
Spray your lasagna pan with non-stick spray (or oil it lightly). Pour a scant third of the béchamel into the bottom of the pan. Add a layer of lasagna noodles. Spread a layer of the squash on top of the noodles, then the ricotta mixture, then onions and kale, then a little shredded cheese. Repeat this sequence once. Add another layer of noodles and pour the remaining béchamel over the top. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle with remaining Gouda, and bake for another 15 minutes.

Add a layer of roasted tomatoes if you have them to add a little more flavor and moisture.
Some recipes also add a little cooked and drained sausage.

Adapted from:makeshiftcookblogspot.com