Pumpkin and Sausage Lasagna

Pumpkin and sausage lasagna is a rich and flavorful autumn dish that combines the sweetness of pumpkin with the strong taste of sausage. Here’s how to prepare this dish:

Ingredients

• 500 g of lasagna sheets (fresh or dried that need to be boiled)
• 400 g of cleaned pumpkin
• 300 g of sausage
• 250 g of béchamel sauce
• 150 g of grated Parmesan cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Nutmeg to taste
• Extra-virgin olive oil to taste
• Butter to taste for the baking dish

Preparation

1. Start by chopping the pumpkin into cubes and cook it in a pan with a drizzle of oil and a pinch of salt until it becomes soft. You can also bake it in the oven if you prefer.
2. In a separate pan, cook the crumbled sausage meat without the skin until it is well browned.
3. Prepare the béchamel sauce in a pot with milk, butter, flour, and a pinch of nutmeg, following your favorite recipe or purchase a ready-made one.
4. Grease a baking dish with some butter and begin to assemble the lasagna alternating layers of pasta, pumpkin, sausage, béchamel, and a sprinkle of Parmesan.
5. Continue until the dish is full, making sure to finish with a rich layer of béchamel and Parmesan.
6. Bake in a preheated oven at 180 °C for about 30-40 minutes, or until the surface is golden brown and crispy.
7. Remove the lasagna from the oven and let it rest for a few minutes before serving.

You can add mozzarella between layers for an even more stringy version and enrich with aromatic herbs to your taste.

Curiosity

The combination of pumpkin and sausage is a classic in Italian cuisine, especially in the northern regions where both ingredients are widely used. Lasagna with this combination is a great autumnal variation on the classic lasagna with ragù.