This Quick Squash Lasagna Is the Perfect Weeknight Dinner

Photos by Issy Croker

The recipe comes from One: Pot, Pan, Planet: A Greener Way to Cook for You and Your Family, an eco-friendly cookbook by author Anna Jones.

Quick Squash Lasagna

Serves 6
Ingredients:
  • 2 ¾ cups crushed canned tomatoes
  • 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
  • A good pinch of dried chili flakes
  • 2 15-oz. cans green or Puy lentils, drained (or 9 oz. home-cooked)
  • ½ butternut squash (about 1 â…“ pounds), peeled and grated
  • â…“ cup black olives, pitted and chopped
  • 2 Tbsp capers
  • The zest of a lemon
  • A small bunch of basil, leaves picked
  • 2 4-oz. balls of mozzarella or vegan-style mozzarella
  • 9 oz. dried lasagna sheets
Photo by Issy Croker
Photo by Issy Croker
Instructions:
  1. Heat the oven to 400°F. In a large bowl, mix the canned tomatoes with the oil, half a teaspoon of flaky sea salt, the chopped garlic, chili flakes, drained lentils, grated squash, chopped olives, capers, and lemon zest. Tear the basil leaves in half.
  2. Spoon a quarter of the sauce into an ovenproof dish roughly 8″ × 12″ (I use an oval roughly the same size), tear over a third of one of the balls of mozzarella, then cover with pasta sheets. Repeat for another two layers: a quarter of the sauce, a third of a ball of mozzarella, a layer of pasta.
  3. Finish with a final layer of sauce, torn pieces of the second ball of mozzarella, sprinkle with salt and pepper, top with the basil, and drizzle with a little more olive oil. Bake for 30–35 minutes, until the mozzarella is deeply golden. Serve with a sharply dressed salad (I mix lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, mustard and extra virgin olive oil, and toss through a bowl of green leaves).

Related: Everything You Need to Eat in the Hudson Valley This Winter

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