Okay I'll start off by conceding that lasagna is such a labor-intensive dish. My mom makes a really delicious lasagna but she rarely makes it now because of how much work it involves. I'm not going to lie to you: this keto-friendly and low-carb version is even more labor intensive--mainly because instead of a ready-made pack of lasagna pasta noodles, you're going to have to peel and thinly-slice a butternut squash in place of it. Don't be discouraged though because this is worth the work involved.
INGREDIENTS:
10 oz. Marinara sauce (I'll typically use Prego Italian Garlic Pasta Sauce when I'm not in the mood to make marinara from scratch--also because this is my son's favourite pasta sauce)
14 oz butternut squash, thinly sliced. (I used a small butternut squash and ended up using only half the slices. I am going to use the remaining slices to make another lasagna this weekend)
1 tbs EVOO (extra virgin olive oil)
1.5 lb ground beef (I used Snake River Farm ground Wagyu)
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tbs black pepper
1 1/2 c ricotta cheese
2 large eggs
3 cups fresh baby spinach
2 tbs fresh parsley, chopped
2 tbs fresh basil, chopped
2 c shredded mozarella
1/2 c grated parmesan
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 400 F.
Cook beef in a hot skillet for 7 minutes until cooked through. Add half of the marinara sauce and season with salt and pepper.
In a mixing bowl, prepare ricotta layer by combining ricotta cheese, eggs, chopped basil and parsley, and season with salt and pepper. Spread the remaining sauce on the bottom of a casserole dish. Arrange the first layer of butternut squash slices until entire bottom of dish is covered. Place a layer of baby spinach over squash slices and then top spinach with cooked meat mixture. Spread ricotta mixture over meat--making sure it is spread to all corners of the dish. Layer again with squash > spinach > meat > ricotta. Finish off the last layer by sprinkling parmesan and mozzarella cheese .
Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil and bake again for another 10 minutes or until cheese starts to brown on the edges. Cool for 10-12 minutes on a rack before slicing up to serve (that way your lasagna doesn't fall apart because it's still too wet and bubbly).
I brought a slice over to my friend and neighbour, Joyce, for her to try and she liked it! So I'm quite happy with how this turned out.
Bonus tips for tweaking this recipe is to add a layer of pesto (either homemade or store-bought) and some grated sharp cheddar to give it more oomph.
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