“I would rather sit on a pumpkin, and have it all to myself, than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” — Henry David Thoreau

If you’re anything like me you probably have customs; things you do to welcome the return of Fall. For me it’s decorating the home with pumpkins, cozy candles, pillows and blankets. Other things on my list are planning Thanksgiving, a visit to the pumpkin patch, carving jack-o-lanterns with family in October, Fall themed movie nights and plenty of comfort food cooking.
Tonight I made fresh Pumpkin lasagna with ricotta and spinach. For the pasta I combine a cup of flour and 2 eggs. I let the dough sit in a ball on the counter for 25 minutes then run it through my pasta maker to create lasagna sheets. Nothing beats the flavour of homemade pasta. I recommend trying it if you have the patience.
If Autumn had a flavour it would have to be root veggies, colourful squash and pumpkin. Join me in the kitchen, it’s time to cook!
Ingredients (serves 4)
- For the noodles:
- For fresh noodles – 1 Cup Flour + 2 Eggs OR
- 6 boxed lasagna noodles cooked in boiling salted water.
- Ricotta Cheese Mixture:
- 1/2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 bag spinach
- 1 large container of Ricotta Cheese
- 1 egg
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder or to taste (I always add extra)
- 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/2 teaspoon of salt or more to taste.. I find ricotta quite bland so I sprinkled extra salt over the ricotta while assembling the lasagna.
- Freshly ground white or black pepper
- For Pumpkin Layer:
- 1 can of Pumpkin puree (398 ml)
- 1/4 cup Almond Milk or regular Milk
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ginger
- ¼ teaspoon allspice – You can also just add 1 teaspoon of pumpkin spice mix if you have it. Yes, the same one you use for pumpkin pie.
- 3/4 teaspoon of salt or to taste
- Freshly ground white or black pepper
- For The Layers:
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, divided
- 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, divided
- To garnish:
- Fresh chopped parsley or fresh chopped sage leaves. I picked 3 sage leaves from the garden and used them.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees for fresh pasta or 400 degrees F for boxed lasagna.
- Grease a baking pan.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and cook the lasagna noodles. If you’re using fresh lasagna like me, 90 seconds will do. You’ll need too cook boxed noodles for about 6 minutes and drain. Run cold water over the drained pasta so that you can assemble the lasagna immediately without burning your hands.
- Cook the spinach in a shallow pan. Add ½ tablespoon olive oil over medium heat and cook spinach, season with a little salt and pepper and cook until spinach wilts down. Add to a medium bowl and allow to cool for a minute or two.
- Add the Ricotta to the bowl with spinach as well as the egg, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper and set aside.
- Next make the pumpkin mixture by adding the canned pumpkin, milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, salt and pepper to a bowl and mix all together. Taste and add more salt or spices as you see fit.
- To assemble the lasagna, spread a cup of the pumpkin mixture to the bottom of the baking dish. Place 2 lasagna noodles on top of the pumpkin mixture.
- Spread half of the spinach-ricotta mixture on top of the noodles, then top with ¾ cup shredded mozzarella.
- Next, add the rest of the pumpkin mixture on top of the mozzarella and sprinkle with 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese.
- Repeat layers once more: adding 2 more noodles, remaining spinach-ricotta mixture, ¾ cup shredded mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Finally, top with remaining 2 noodles + shredded mozzarella cheese.
- For fresh homemade noodles, place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes then broil for a few minutes to brown the cheese overtop. For boxed noodles cover pan with foil and bake covered for 25 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 15-20 minutes until cheese starts to brown just a bit.
- Garnish with extra parmesan and chopped sage and/or parsley. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

What a wonderful twist to an Italian staple. The pumpkin gives this recipe an earthy spiced flavour. It’s very mild and you’ll enjoy this one if you’re not a huge fan of tomato sauce.
Thanks for joining me today.
I love sharing my recipes and life with you. If you feel so inclined to buy me a hot chocolate so that I can continue creating content like this, you can do so here:
With gratitude.
Love,
Jennifer
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