Lasagna Nonna

The recipe ingredients are delicious and the lasagna concept is quite nice. Based upon the recipe that is given, I made the following modifications. With the following modifications, I was able to make two 8 X 12 lasagna casseroles, which would easily serve 10 – 12 people.

2-3 smallish butternut squash baked as suggested. Once the flesh is spooned from the shell, add a couple Tablespoons of butter and some salt and pepper to taste. This sweetens the squash and brings out the flavor a bit. You might also try adding in the minced fresh sage to the squash in lieu of including it in the ricotta/cream/spice mixture.

From the whole milk ricotta through the fresh sage leaves in the recipe item list, use 1/2 of the amounts suggested with the exception of the heavy cream. Use just 1 cup heavy cream (less than 1/2 the amount). So, 1 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta; 1 cup of heavy cream; 2 T. minced garlic; 2 T. minced shallots; 1 T. dried basil; 1 T. dried oregano; 1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes; 2 T. minced fresh sage leaves; salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

In the layering of the lasagna, 6 cups of fresh spinach is plenty. 4-6 cups of marinara sauce (2-3 cups per lasagna casserole), depending upon your taste, works well. I like more cheese on a lasagna, so for two casseroles, I use about 3 1/2 – 4 cups of grated mozzarella and about 3/4 cup of grated parmesan. I mix the mozzarella and parmesan (tossing it by hand) in a bowl; add a little salt and pepper to the cheeses; and, add in a bit more dried oregano and basil. When the cheese blend is placed on top of the lasagna casseroles, I drizzle a little bit of olive oil on top of it all – not too much, just a drizzle.

Step 7 says to add 1/2 of the butternut squash to this layer in the lasagna. Even though the recipe does not say anything at all (unless I missed it) about adding the other half of the butternut squash, I added the remaining half of the butternut squash in Step 8 – the ricotta blend; baby spinach; then dollops of the butternut squash to form the layer in Step 8.

I baked the lasagnas, covered with foil, at 375 degrees for about an hour; then, I finished them, uncovered, to further melt and brown the cheeses on top for about 15 minutes. You may want to adjust your oven temperature as you are browning to 400 degrees.

I did not include the mornay sauce in my recipe this time. I may try it next time. When plating the lasagna, I placed the individual portions on a swath of marinara sauce in lieu of the mornay sauce.

It’s a very nice change from my traditional lasagna, made by my own Nonna. Enjoy!

I have never made lasagna. I saw this on DDD and had to try it. I know my home made version is probably nothing like the original but it was still deeeeeelish! Can’t wait to go to Nashville and try the original! Thanks @CafeNonna! 

We were in Nashville and had the lasagna at Nonna’s-and it was fantastic.  So we were compelled to try to make the dish at home.  Followed the recipe pretty much as given, and it too was fantastic.  My guinea pigs…I mean guests…raved.  A couple of side notes however.  This is a recipe for about 20 servings (not 8) about 4.5 by 2”.  (I used 2, 9.5 by 13” pans)It freezes beautifully, thank goodness, and we will eat this fabulous lasagna for quite a while!  Also used low fat ricotta (and someone else suggested half n half instead of heavy cream.)  I had no complaint about the consistency of the ricotta/cream mixture and saved a lot of calories.  In my case, 3 butternut squash yielded nearly 8 cups…2 were leftover.  Couldn’t find fresh lasagna noodles so used a ‘no boil’ version successfully.  I think there were 12-15 small sheets per box, and I used about 2 boxes.  There is a Mornay sauce mentioned in the video, and it was there in person, so I made one for my meal using a quick internet version.  Don’t skip this as it does add a creamy richness to the dish.  I baked the pans, let them cool and then for my dinner, finished in individual baking dishes with more marinara, mornay sauce and cheese at 400 degrees for 12-15 min) We all loved the favor, consistency and creativity in this recipe.  Plus, you can do most everything in advance and then finish things off at the right time for piping hot service.  As we work our way through the frozen portions, I served with a homemade meat sauce and that too was a huge hit.  Thanks so much for sharing!

I just had this at cafe Nonna tonight and it was awesome!  Can’t wait to try it

This is a great alternative to the usual Lasagna, the spinach is great and the ricotta sauce a revelation!!!

It was pretty good, but not great. I made the recipe exactly as directed. My husband is a “texture” guy and didn’t like the squash, but liked the overall flavor of the dish. I didn’t mind the squash but felt it didn’t really add anything to the dish. I really like the spinach and flavor of the ricotta mixture.

This was a very time consuming recipe, lots of components but well worth it. I substituted 1/2 and 1/2 for the cream and was worried that it might be too wet so I only added 2 cups and it set up perfectly. I made my own lasagna noodles and rolled them out very thinly, next time I’ll roll them out a bit thicker so they hold up to the sauce and the squash a little better. Everyone loved it.

I have the inside scoop on this dish………..it’s totally delish!

Fantastic recipe!