BUTTERNUT BEEF STROGANOFF LASAGNA
by
Southfacin’ Cook, Patsy Brumfield
What? – you’re asking yourself. Answer: My son-in-law, Chapman usually isn’t difficult to cook for, but frankly, he doesn’t like mushrooms. Go figure.
So, when I indentured myself to him and daughter Margaret after grandson Henry was born in September, I realized I’d signed up for three meals a day for two weeks. And what was I going to cook, after my half-dozen go-to entrees?
Lasagna was great. That got made. But what about Beef Stroganoff, in a lasagna format? But without mushrooms, how would that work? I took the leap and went completely out-of-bounds to choose sliced butternut squash, nothing like mushrooms, what the heck!
Everybody, except Henry of course, loved it. So, I’m recommending it to you. It serves a bunch of folks, alongside roasted cauliflower or Brussel sprouts or whatever other side you like.
BUTTERNUT BEEF STROGANOFF LASAGNA
EQUIPMENT – Large deep saucepan with top, cutting boards, chef’s knives, whisk, medium mixing bowls, wooden spoon, ladle, measuring cup, aluminum foil. Deep baking pan (this lets you layer as much as ingredients will allow). Cooking spray.
INGREDIENTS
1 medium-large butternut squash
2.5 lb. sirloin beef roast (I think chicken would work too)
1 large yellow onion, medium chopped
1 pkg dry onion soup (not with mushrooms)
1 pkg lasagna noodles
Olive oil
Cheese sauce:
24 oz. cottage cheese or ricotta
6 oz. pkg shredded parmesan, reserve 1 cup
8 oz. shredded mozzarella
3 whole eggs
1 cup dried parsley
Rinse the outside of the butternut squash. Set it aside.
Rinse roast and pat dry. On large cutting board, slice thinly across the grain into 1-inch(ish) bitesize pieces.
In large sauce pan, drizzle 1 Tablespoon olive oil, bring heat to medium and add onions. Lightly salt and stir occasionally to a light golden color. Pour into medium mixing bowl.
Return sauce pan to medium heat and, in batches, brown pieces of roast. As each batch browns, add it to your onion mixing bowl. Repeat dash of olive oil, if you need it. Once you’re browned all the beef, return it and the onions to the sauce pan over medium heat. Add one packet of onion soup and 2 cups of water. Stir, bring to a simmer. Cover, turn heat to low and simmer about 45 minutes. Allow to cool about 15 minutes. In another mixing bowl, whisk sour cream and 1/2 cup water, then mix into beef sauce. (This may seem a bit juicy, but the lasagna noodles need the liquid to cook.)
Meanwhile, prepare your cheese sauce in another mixing bowl and hold it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to layer the stroganoff. Hold reserved parmesan there too.
On a clean cutting board, use a sharp knife to cut the butternut squash across its neck into two pieces. Slice off the ends. Remove the peel. Cut the fat end in half and with a large spoon carve out the seed center being careful to scrape away the curly surrounding tissue without cutting into the squash’s flesh. When all this is done, slice across the squash neck into 1/2-inch thick disks. Same for fat-end halves into 1/2-inch crescents. Stack and hold with a damp cloth on top, to prevent drying out.
Now you’re ready to layer!
Lightly spray the inside of your baking pan with cooking oil. Ladle a thin layer of liquid from the sauce pan. Add layer of lasagna noodles (break them if they don’t exactly fit your pan. I usually have 3 noodles per layer.) Top with 1/3 of your squash slices, then 1/3 beef and sauce, then generous dollops of cheese sauce. Press next noodle layer into the cheese dollops and repeat squash, beef-sauce and cheese sauce. Likely you’ll get three layers, ending with cheese sauce. Finish the layers with your reserved parmesan cheese.
Roll off aluminum foil to cover, but first, spray the side facing down so the foil won’t stick to your cheese layer. If you don’t have spray handy, attach the foil so that it’s a little “tented” in the middle and not touching the cheese layer.
Turn your oven to 375.
Place your completed stroganoff casserole into the refrigerator or it can sit on the countertop for 30 minutes. This allows the sauce to penetrate the noodles, which the internal cooking steam will completely soften.
Bake covered for 45 minutes. Carefully uncover and bake another 20-30 minutes to ensure the top is golden. Remove from the oven and let it rest at least 15-20 minutes to cool enough to serve without running all over your plates. It’s also a little kinder to your mouth and tongue after a bit of cooling.
Enjoy. Serves 6.
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