November 24th, 2009 
duodishes 
For a while, there were a lot of pumpkins bouncing around this blog. Usually the most frequent bright orange ingredient you’ll find here is a sweet potato, but it is pumpkin season, and we’ve been using the big fruit a lot. This may be one of, if not the final, pumpkin recipe you’ll see here until the need to overdose on pumpkin returns. Although it can be applied to recipes in a great way, there comes a time when you have to say ‘No more!’ Maybe you haven’t boarded the train to See You Laterville yet, but we may just be ready to bid adieu to pumpkin after this.
This recipe was inspired by the pumpkin mascarpone dip we made for Amir’s birthday dinner. It was smooth, creamy and rich–perfect to layer in between sheets of pasta. The sausage adds a noticeable spicy and obviously meaty level to a dish that is full of vegetables and lots of cheese. The best part may just be the bites of sage that mesh well with just about everything. One of our friends had a couple of servings, and she really loved the way sweet and savory do a sexy tango in this dish!
Pumpkin and Sausage Lasagna – Serves 8 to 10
1 pound lasagna noodles, cooked
16 ounces mascarpone cheese
3 cups pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons honey
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 links spicy Italian sausage, casings removed
1 small red onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
12-14 fresh sage leaves, chopped
5 cups fresh spinach leaves, roughly chopped
3 cups mozzarella, shredded
4 ounces fresh mozzarella, torn
Olive oil
1. Using an electric mixer, beat mascarpone cheese, pumpkin puree, honey, cumin, ginger, cinnamon and salt until smooth. Set aside.
2. Swirl a bit of olive oil in a pan over medium high heat. When oil is hot enough, add garlic and onions, tossing until coated. Slide in sausage and mushrooms and cook down until sausage has browned fully, approximately 10-12 minutes. Break up sausage as it cooks. Remove from heat and stir in sage. Set aside.
3. Spread a thin layer of olive oil over the bottom and sides of a deep 9″x13″ baking dish. Add about 1/4 cup of pumpkin mascarpone spread to the bottom of the dish and spread evenly to both sides. Top with three lasagna noodles, followed by another layer of mascarpone spread, a handful of spinach, a bit of the sausage and vegetables and a handful of shredded mozzarella. Repeat until all of the ingredients have been used.
4. Top the final layer with the fresh mozzarella pieces and cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 30-35 minutes at 375 degrees. Uncover and bake another 5-10 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.
Click HERE for printable recipe.
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Well, I’m not totally ready to leave pumpkin just yet. ;o) This looks very unique and yummy!
That’s delicious ! I don’t mind more rounds of pumpkin dishes like this!!
Any dish described as a sexy tango is a must try for me. Great dish! Gorgeous photo, I love that it shows all the layers.l
I made a pumpkin lasagne myself recently… isn’t that an odd coincidence? I never heard of it before and now twice! GREG
What a great idea! Sausage in a lasagna sounds so good I can’t believe I’ve never come across it before. Add pumpkin and marscapone and this has gotta be a winner! Yum!
My tardy blog reading has come to this: I missed Amir’s birthday?! Happy Belated Birthday wishes to uno of duo!
I’m not a big fan of pumpkin but in this dish, I’d be happy to take a plateful.
Darn, I messed up my own name in the first comment. Coffee . . . I need coffee!
I love the colors. I bet it was amazing. Pumpkin..pasta..and cheese is the perfect combo.
Wow this is luscious and truly sexy! What a fabulous way to eat pumpkin and a wonderful new way to eat lasagne. Beautiful!
Few things in life are better than a combination of pumpkin, sausage, and sage. This combo never fails. I love it so much and looking at this recipe makes me hungry even though I just had breakfast 5 minutes ago.
What an interesting combination of flavors! Love it!
I could never get tired of pumpkin, but Jon did and said no more
I still have some pumpkin recipes I want to make, so he’ll have to take some more, LOL.
I love your lasagna idea. It’s given me some ideas for more recipes, hehe.
Pumpkin and sage go so well together – and I love all the other spices and flavors you’ve got going on in this lasagna. What a great twist on the typical dish, and so perfect for the season. Yum!
Yum. I have some local hot italian sausage at home as well as some pumpkin puree I made from one of my fairytale pumpkins. Yum. This sounds like a great dish. I might make it in individual servings and freeze it so I can bake them up whenever I need a quick dinner.
We don’t get anything like the overload of pumpkin here that you get in the States at this time of year, so I’d have no trouble saying a big hello to a lasagne like this one and I’ll have more where that came from, please!
Oh! This lasagna sound and look delicious…pumpkin and sausage
Yummie!
This is such a great idea for a lasagna. I really like it. Thanks for sharing.
This looks excellent! Such a delicious spin on a classic! Love it!
I don’t think anyone could say see ya later to this pumpkin lasagna! Fun to see a savory dish to counter all the pumpkin cookies, cheesecakes, pies, ice cream, coffee cakes, cinnamon rolls I’ve been seeing lately!
Oh I LOVE this recipe – thanks for giving the pumpkins one last shot!!!!
Ha ha! I’m trying to squeeze two more pumpkin recipes on my blog before the end of November. Pumpkin has been so rampant around the blogsphere. This lasagna looks amazing! Sausage is definitely my lasagna meat of choice (over ground beef), and mixed with pumpkin and sage, I bet it’s divine!
YUM! I really want to try this one. Maybe next week, after all the T-day craziness is over.
Oh please! There is no such thing as too much pumpkin, esp when it comes from the gastronomically brilliant minds of yours.
I love this. This sounds like the ultimate in comfort–pumpkin, sage, sausage, melted cheese– so much delicious goodness wrapped up inside this lasagna.
yummy!!! I’m so glad pumpkins are so abundant right now. I’m don’t want to leave the pumpkin behind. No t just yet. ;-D
Hey guys, you’re making me hungry again and I just ate! Awesome, love pumpkin love lasagne, what a perfect combo…perfect Duo in fact!
I’ve never had pumpkin in lasagna – what a terrific idea.
Okay, finally…a unique and creative use of pumpkin! I have 3 cans organic in the closet and besides the pumpkin & oatmeal muffins the kids love, I needed a great idea–thanks!
I don’t think I will ever burn out on pumpkin.
I have been cooking/baking with it nonstop since Sept. but I’ve never even thought of trying it in a lasasgna. Great idea! I love pumpkin ravioli, so the pumpkin/pasta thing sounds great to me. I like the idea of the sage leaves as well.
m already craving duo!! happy thanx giving!
cheers!!
I don’t cook enough pumpkin…this sounds great!
Love pumpkin lasagna and with sausage, only happy bellies to be had – this one sounds so tasty!
Oh man! I made a pumpkin and sausage lasagna this week, but mine was nowhere near as tasty as this sounds!