The Peak Fall Ingredient That Gives Lasagna A Lovely Twist

A cheesy comforting casserole like lasagna tastes especially good as the air turns crisp and the leaves change colors. You can bring the spirit of fall into your lasagna with the addition of pumpkin puree. Nothing says autumn quite like the rich sweet and savory taste of this popular squash. And while you may be more used to seeing it in sweet creations like this classic pumpkin pie recipe and pumpkin spice lattes, the puree works equally well in a savory pasta casserole.

Its hearty, smooth consistency and slight sweetness will balance the creamy, savory notes of cheese, or a bechamel sauce. Plus, pumpkin puree is a canned product that makes for an easy addition to layer onto lasagna. It'll pair well with popular veggie ingredients like spinach, kale, and eggplant. There are numerous ways to incorporate pumpkin puree, but perhaps the easiest is to make this ingredient into its own layer by heating it up, stirring in some aromatics and spices, then layering it between lasagna sheets, cheese, and veggies. You can also blend it into ricotta with a sprinkle of parmesan for a sweet and savory upgrade. If you're making lasagna with a bechamel sauce, you can use a hand emulsifier to blend the puree into it once it's thickened.

Pumpkin puree will work best in a white lasagna, paired with creamy ricotta, nutty and salty parmesan, buttery gruyere, and savory herbs like sage, basil, and oregano. You can still use many of the same warming baking spices you'd use in pumpkin desserts, including nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon, and allspice. They help this squash's flavor shine next to savory and salty pairings. Add vegetables to the ricotta mixture like umami-rich sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions, roasted garlic, spinach or kale.

Italian sausage infused with sage and fennel would make the perfect pairing for pumpkin if you're looking for a meaty lasagna. You could stir puree into the ricotta bechamel layer of our recipe for white lasagna with sausage. At the other end of the spectrum, you can make a vegan pumpkin lasagna by blending the squash into an oat milk-based bechamel with ricotta made from soaked cashews, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, and garlic.

If you're looking for a more challenging pasta dish to try, you can use pumpkin puree as a ravioli filling (Believe it or not, pumpkin ravioli is a traditional recipe from Northern Italy known as tortellini mantovani.) You could also incorporate it as a substitute for the spuds in this recipe for sweet potato gnocchi with sage butter sauce.