Summer Squash Lasagna
A tasty, rib sticking, mouth watering recipe that you can easily tweak to make your own.
Warning: Pans of this will not last long!
This has been a family favorite for YEARS. I remember begging my mother as kid to make this, not understanding how much work went into prepping and making it.
This recipe is for you if:
1. You're overloaded with squash.
2. Mise en place (prep) doesn't scare you.
3. You are looking for a different kind of summer squash dish.
SUPPLIES NEEDED:
Summer Squash
This is what a Lucky 8 looks like:
Store bought or home made! Throw some stale bread into the food processor or grab a can of bread crumbs at the store. I like to use both course ( panko ) and fine ( your typical ) bread crumbs together. This helps give a nice crunch, while still covering the entire squash without having inches of crumbs. This is where you can get creative, add some of your favorite herbs and a bit of Parmesan cheese to the crumb mixture. We used Oregano, Basil, Sage and Thyme in ours.
Again, use what you like - make up a sauce ( or buy it in a jar ) or your favorite kind. You can add some ground meat, add some other veggies, or just have a marinara sauce. Heck, you can even make a white sauce or Alfredo if that's what you prefer. You want enough sauce to cover three lasagna layers in a pan. We had a 3 Qt. pan about 3/4's filled. We cooked some ground turkey, added some garden tomatoes for a sauce base and then added to it with a half a jar of newmans own sauce. There are plenty of easy sauce recipes out there!
Sundries:
Cheese: We used some fresh mozerella and a little cheddar.
Eggs: Or another way to bind the crumbs to the squash.
Oil: Something with a decent smoke point like vegetable, coconut, sunflower, etc.
THE PROCESS
Mise en place
Slice 2-3 medium squash, 1/4" thickness.
Prep Sauce and Ground Meat/Veggies (or open a jar)
Prep breadcrumbs (about 1 1/2 cups) add 1/4 cup parm cheese.
Beat two eggs, add salt and pepper.
Crumble, shred, slice the cheese(s) of your choosing!
SQUASH PREP
Heat oil in skillet on stove.
Dip Squash in egg, then coat in bread crumbs completely.
You can see the thickness of the squash here.
Plop Squash into the Egg, let the extra drip off.
Dip into the bread crumb mixture. This is half panko, half regular bread crumbs.
Plop those beauties into the hot oil. Brown on each side ( usually about 1-2 min per side)
Place on absorbent surface ( paper towels, tea towel ) and let excess oil drip off.
Repeat until all of the squash is finished.
ASSEMBLY
Now is a good time to go preheat that oven to 375 degrees.
Grab a decent size casserole dish. I used a 3Qt. 9x13 Pyrex dish. Put two turns of olive oil in the bottom to help keep things from sticking.
Put your first layer of squash in the bottom. Use different sized pieces to cover
like a lasagna noodle the best you can.
Grab that sauce you prepared earlier! This is a basic tomato sauce with some ground turkey.
Spread a nice even layer of sauce over your first layer.
I decided on just a bit of mozzarella in between my layers. Some like to use ricotta, so it has a consistency like lasagna. With the heft of the squash, I typically steer away from ricotta, it makes for a very filling and hefty portion.
Sprinkle that cheese, if you please! (depending on whats around sometimes I don't use cheese in between)
Put your next layer of squash on top!
Sauce and cheese that layer ( number 2 ) and add layer number 3. For me this was my final layer. if your using a smaller, deeper dish, you may have a few more.
On top of your final layer ( mine was 3 ) add the last of your sauce and some more cheese! I used some shredded sharp cheddar.
Cover that bad boy in tin foil or even better a casserole cover (if you'd like to save your brain from leeching chemicals). Pop in the oven for 45 minutes. After 30, remove the cover to let everything melt and brown.
Let sit for a few minutes to let its molten hot sauce calm down. Then slice & enjoy!