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Pumpkin Lasagna

A baked dish of pumpkin, almond, and amaretti layers served with a cider‑maple reduction.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 17 ingredients
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Why it works: Apple and cider are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,238 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-one, which smells mushroom, metallic. The science ↓

Pumpkin Lasagna

Oven350°F
Time15 to 20 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Roast the pumpkins

  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.

  2. Cut tops off pumpkins and set aside.

  3. Scrape out seeds and discard them.

  4. Place pumpkins on a baking sheet and roast until tender, about 30 minutes.

  5. Remove pumpkins from oven, scrape out all flesh from 4 pumpkins and transfer flesh to a bowl.

  6. Discard shells.

  7. Remove most of flesh from remaining 6 pumpkins and transfer to a bowl, reserving shells for further baking.

Make the pumpkin sauce

  1. Heat a large skillet over medium‑high heat, and when it is hot, add 1 tablespoon butter.

  2. Add onion and sauté for 2 minutes.

  3. Add brown sugar and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring occasionally.

  4. Add pumpkin flesh and stir it well.

  5. Add broth and bring mixture to a boil.

  6. Reduce heat to medium and cook until pumpkin starts to fall apart, about 10 to 12 minutes.

  7. Add 1/2 cup almonds, transfer to a blender or food processor and purée.

  8. Add remaining 3 tablespoons of butter, salt and pepper.

  9. Return mixture to skillet and reheat it.

Assemble and bake

  1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat, add lasagna sheets and cook them until al dente, for 3 to 4 minutes.

  2. Remove lasagna from heat and drain.

  3. Place sheets in skillet with pumpkin sauce and toss.

  4. Using tongs, remove sheets and place them in bottom of shells.

  5. Spoon sauce over lasagna and sprinkle one‑quarter of remaining almonds and one‑quarter of amaretti, Parmesan cheese and mascarpone over top.

  6. Repeat until pumpkins are filled, or all ingredients are used up, with a final layer of almonds, amaretti, Parmesan cheese and mascarpone.

  7. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Make the cider glaze and serve

  1. Meanwhile, place cider and maple syrup in saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat.

  2. Reduce heat to medium and cook until mixture has reduced to one‑third and has a sticky, syrupy consistency, about 15 minutes.

  3. Add butter, salt and pepper, and set aside.

  4. Drizzle cider‑maple syrup sauce over individual pumpkins and serve.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

585Calories
14 gProtein
33 gFat
64 gCarbs

Counts 10 of 12 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 10 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Mascarpone2 tbsp (28g)120
Parmesan Cheese1 oz (28g)110
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Apple Cider1 medium (182g)95
Maple Syrup1 tbsp (20ml)52
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Almond1 almond (1.2g)7
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Pumpkinnot in our table0
Lasagnanot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Apple + cidertop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together1,238 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).

  2. Butter + parmesan cheesetop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,163 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  3. Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together68,474 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

  4. Butter + almondtop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,245 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).

  5. Onion + almondtop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,769 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Sugar pumpkins
Form the edible vessel and supply the sweet, thick base of the sauce.
Lasagna sheets
Provide the pasta layers that give the dish its structure and bite.
Mascarpone
Adds richness and creaminess to the layers as it softens with the heat.
Parmesan cheese
Adds salty, savory flavor and browning on the baked top.
Toasted almonds
Add crunch and nutty flavor to the sauce and layers.
Apple cider
Reduces into a sticky, sweet-tart syrup that glazes the finished dish.

The step that matters

Reducing the cider and maple syrup. As the liquid boils down, sugar concentrates and the syrup thickens to a sticky glaze. Heat that is too high can scorch the sugars, and stopping too early leaves it thin.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, butter, almond, pepper, parmesan cheese, apple, cider):

  1. Capsicumfits better
  2. Mustardfits better
  3. Broccolifits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, butter, almond, pepper, parmesan cheese, apple, cider. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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