Lots of us tried this a few years back - and it was really good. it was those darn cookies that created a stir - where to get them - lol. Butternut Squash Lasagna Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis Posted by LoriJean Recipe Summary Difficulty: Medium Prep Time: 30 minutes Inactive Prep Time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 1 hour 25 minutes Yield: 8 to 10 servings User Rating: Cook's Note: The no-boil lasagna noodles can be substituted with fresh spinach lasagna sheets. Look for fresh lasagna sheets in the refrigerated section of specialty markets. 1 tablespoon olive oil 1 (1 1/2 to 2-pound) butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1-inch cubes Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1/2 cup water 3 amaretti cookies, crumbled 1/4 cup butter 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 3 1/2 cups whole milk Pinch nutmeg 3/4 cup (lightly packed) fresh basil leaves 12 no-boil lasagna noodles 2 1/2 cups shredded whole-milk mozzarella cheese 1/3 cup grated Parmesan Heat the oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the squash and toss to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Pour the water into the skillet and then cover and simmer over medium heat until the squash is tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Cool slightly and then transfer the squash to a food processor. Add the amaretti cookies and blend until smooth. Season the squash puree, to taste, with more salt and pepper. Melt the butter in a heavy medium-size saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the milk. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly, whisking often, about 5 minutes. Whisk in the nutmeg. Cool slightly. Transfer half of the sauce to a blender*. Add the basil and blend until smooth. Return the basil sauce to the sauce in the pan and stir to blend. Season the sauce with salt and pepper, to taste. Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter a 13 by 9 by 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread 3/4 cup of the sauce over the prepared baking dish. Arrange 3 lasagna noodles on the bottom of the pan. Spread 1/3 of the squash puree over the noodles. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of mozzarella cheese. Drizzle 1/2 cup of sauce over the noodles. Repeat layering 3 more times. Tightly cover the baking dish with foil and bake the lasagna for 40 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses over the lasagna. Continue baking uncovered until the sauce bubbles and the top is golden, 15 minutes longer. Let the lasagna stand for 15 minutes before serving. *When blending hot liquids: Remove liquid from the heat and allow to cool for at least 5 minutes. Transfer liquid to a blender or food processor and fill it no more than halfway. If using a blender, release one corner of the lid. This prevents the vacuum effect that creates heat explosions. Place a towel over the top of the machine, pulse a few times then process on high speed until smooth.

I like mine just cut into cubes, tossed with a little olive oil and roasted with just salt and pepper. I like mine more savory than sweet and so I like this soup: Classic Butternut Squash Soup 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 1 carrot, diced 1 celery stalk, diced 1 onion, diced 4 cups cubed butternut squash, fresh or frozen 1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper Heat oil in a large soup pot. Add carrot, celery and onion. Cook until vegetables have begun to soften and onion turns translucent, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in butternut squash, thyme, chicken broth, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until squash is fork-tender, about 30 minutes. Use an immersion blender to purée soup. Alternatively, let the soup cool slightly and carefully purée in batches in an upright blender. Three Twists Apple, Gorgonzola and Almond Butternut Soup Stir 1 cup unsweetened applesauce into puréed soup. Garnish each serving with crumbled Gorgonzola cheese, toasted almonds, a few slices of thinly sliced apple and a small sprig of fresh thyme. Thai-style Butternut Soup Stir a tablespoon of red curry paste and 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger into carrot, celery and onion mixture. Add 1/2 cup coconut milk with broth. Purée soup and garnish each serving with toasted coconut flakes and chopped fresh cilantro. Southwestern-style Butternut Soup Add a tablespoon chopped chipotles in adobo sauce to carrot, celery and onion mixture. Garnish soup with crumbled queso fresco, toasted pumpkin seeds and chopped fresh cilantro. Per Serving:140 calories (50 from fat), 6g total fat, 1g saturated fat, 0mg cholesterol, 280mg sodium, 20g carbohydrate (5g dietary fiber, 4g sugar), 6g protein I make these dinner rolls too, everyone likes them. I cut the recipe in half and knead the dough in my bread machine, then shape and bake in the oven. Butternut Squash Dinner Rolls 60 Servings 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon active dry yeast 3/4 teaspoon plus 1 cup sugar, divided 1/2 cup warm water (110° to 115°) 2 cups warm milk (110° to 115°) 1/4 cup butter, softened 2 cups mashed cooked butternut squash 2 teaspoons salt 1/4 cup toasted wheat germ 10 to 11-1/2 cups all-purpose flour Additional butter In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 3/4 teaspoon sugar in warm water; let stand for 5 minutes. Add the milk, butter, squash, salt and remaining sugar; mix until smooth. Add wheat germ and 4 cups flour; beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch dough down and divide into thirds; divide each portion into 20 pieces. Shape into balls. Place on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 350° for 15-17 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with butter. Remove to wire racks. Yield: 5 dozen. What a wonderful bounty, I have a great harvest of them myself, I'd better be getting them out of the garden before frost! Annie

I'm experiencing the lull before the storm right now, so I thought I'd better take the opportunity to express my thanks for the recipe. I baked the rolls yesterday, and decided my husband and I could share one roll -- just a taste test. When he was done with his portion he told me he'd be happy to finish off the other 19 rolls all by himself and just keep their prior existence a secret from the rest of the family at Thanksgiving dinner. So I'd say they were a hit with him! I liked them too. And with some leftover mashed butternut squash and canned pumpkin, I can see me making a few more batches in the near future. Next time, however, I'll make sandwich rolls because I use those more than dinner rolls. I like having sandwich/hamburger buns in the freezer because they're so versatile. Thanks for the recipe, Annie.

I don't know how long it takes but it should be on the seed package or a seed site online. I leave them in the field until after the first light frost, oh yeah, you're in Florida! ( sorry, I forgot. lol!) You'll have to go by the number of days. The little curly thing near the fruit should be dead when it's ready, or you can thump it to see if it sounds hollow. (I have never been able to get that, myself. ) When I lived in Ontario I kept my squash in a damp stone root cellar under the very old house spread out on wooden pallets. Many didn't last very long, occasionally one would keep into Jan and the mice nibbled on them, even with two cats. Here in BC, I live on the top floor of a house, our office is on the ground floor and there's a large basement under that. I kept the squash in the office, closed in the wintertime, on an open wire shelf unit with the heat set at 10c to keep the pipes from freezing. It's much drier here than in Ontario also. They all kept much longer. We cooked the last one last week and it was still hard! Last year I left them out in the garden to harden in the sun for a few weeks after cutting off the vine, rolling them every few days or so then brought them in. I didn't do that in Ontario because of the fall rain and the damage from deer running over them, which happened a lot. I'm doing it again this year. I'm impressed with how long they lasted here last winter! I have read that they keep well at a cool room temp so if you have a cool room in your house, I would look at storing them there, someplace with good air circulation and spread out so not to touch each other. They're space hogs.