Lasagna is my husband’s very favorite meal. He asks for it with every birthday that passes. I have made it more than a dozen different ways but this one might be the real winner. Its a combination of Italian sausage, summer squash and roasted tomato sauce with plenty of cheese! And its pretty easy to put together this Summer Squash & Sausage Lasagna – you could definitely make it on a Weeknight.
We had an abundance of summer Squashes in our garden this year, so I was looking for ways to creatively add them to meals we already love. When you slice the squash very thin on the mandolin, they almost dissolve into the sauce. It adds an earthy depth of flavor to a delightfully fresh take on homemade lasagna. My kids didn’t even realize it was in there until they were done eating and I told them. They felt a little tricked but ultimately admitted they still loved it. So if you have to “hide” veggies in your meals for the kids *(or maybe the adults too!, no judging), then this is a really great recipes for you and yoru family.
Substitutes and Variations:
I imagine you could swap out the summer squash for Zucchini and get a really great flavor. I have included my recipe for roasted tomato sauce (which I can into quart jars and have on hand most of the year). But you could really use any of your favorite jarred sauces in this one. You could also swap out the sausage links for crumbles of sausage or ground beef.
Suggestions for Sides:
I served this with some paremsan garlic toast made from sourdough bread. It was so good to soak up the extra sauce with. You can also do a classic garden salad or caesar salad to go with it. Since there are already veggies in the lasagna, you may not get away with another veggie on the side, but you always do some sauted carrots or green beans.
Tools that may make this recipe easier:
You will need a mandoline to make the thin slices of the both the red onion and the summer squash. If you do not have a deep 13×9 casserole dish, you can use a disposable foil one. I actually prefer this because it makes clean-up so much easier.
Now Let’s Get Cookin’!
Summer Squash & Sausage Lasagna
Ingredients
- 2 lb Italian Sausage Links
- 3 cups Summer Squash seeds removed and sliced thin
- 4 cups Mozzarella Cheese shredded
- 1 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
- ½ Red Onion thin sliced
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- 1 tsp Dried Oregano
- 1 qt Tomato Pasta Sauce see recipe below
- 1 pkg Oven-Ready Lasagna Sheets
- Fresh Basil Leaves optional, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400degF.
- Over medium-high heat, cook sausages in a pan until no longer pink in the center. Remove from heat and let sit for around 5 minutes. The slice in half lengthwise.
- In a bowl, add sliced onion and summer squash. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt, pepper and oregano. Toss to coat.
- In a deep 13×9 baking dish, add a small amount of sauce to cover the bottom. Then add a layer of lasagna sheets. Top with half of squash mixture then one cup of mozzarella cheese and ⅓ cup of parmesan cheese. Next add half of split sausages and pour ⅓ of tomato sauce.
- Repeat entire set of layers. Then top with another layer of lasagna sheets, remaining sauce and remaining cheese. Top with fresh basil, if desired. Cover with foil and bake in oven for 45 minutes.
- Remove from oven and remove foil. Return to oven to bake another 15 minutes.
- Let rest at least 10 minutes (20 minutes are better) before cutting and serving.
Roasted Tomato Sauce
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pints Cocktail Tomatoes
- 1 White Onion cut into quarters
- 4 Garlic Cloves peeled
- 1 tsp Salt
- 1 tsp Pepper
- 1 tsp Dried Oregano
- ½ cup Fresh Basil Leaves
- ½ cup Olive Oil
- 1 tbsp Honey
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tbsp Paprika
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400degF
- On a parchment paper covered rimmed baking sheet, add tomatoes, onions, fresh basil and garlic. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and oregano. Drizzle with olive oil. Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes (a small bit of charring is fine, but don't let it burn).
- Remove from oven and let rest 5 minutes. Then remove to a mixing bowl and let rest another 10 minutes.
- Add Worcestershire, honey and paprika to bowl and then blitz with immersion blender. Keep blitzing until smooth.
- Transfer to large pot and place on stove over medium heat. Let bubble and simmer for 30 minutes. Serve with a swirl of olive oil over the top.
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Oh, this looks stunningly good. Going to reserve this recipe to try sometime soon.
That looks so delicious! I make a summer squash lasagna in the summer but I’ve never thought to add sausage to it. YUM