Chicken Butternut Squash Lasagna

Coat the bottom of a large sauté pan with olive oil and place it over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic to the pan. Sauté, stirring every so often, until the onions are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the balsamic vinegar, cinnamon and allspice, and sauté for another couple of minutes.

Move the onion mixture to one side of the pan, and add a bit more olive oil to the empty side. Add the ground chicken to the empty side and sauté, stirring and breaking up the chicken into smaller pieces, until it' cooked. Mix it into the onion mixture, and continue to sauté until the chicken is golden brown.

Add the tomato and stir to blend, using a flat-bottomed spatula to scrape any stuck bits of food off of the bottom of the pan.

Turn the heat to low and simmer until the sauce becomes rich and a bit thicker, 30 to 40 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. (Here's how to season to taste.) Set aside.

Cut about 1/2-inch off of each end, and use a Chef's knife to peel it. Starting at the top, begin cutting downward, just inside the skin. Take the knife all the way to the bottom, and then repeat this all around the squash. If it's easier for you, cut the squash in half horizontally before peeling it -- you'll avoid having to curve the knife as much this way. Now (if you haven't already), cut the squash in half, horizontally. Use a Mandoline, on a very thin slicing setting, to cut the squash vertically. Make as many slices as possible -- when you get to the seeds, just start slicing the other side. It's okay if some of the slices have the center hole in them -- your slices will not all be the same size and many will be irregularly shaped. (Refer to the image above the recipe for guidance. And if you don't have a Mandoline, you can use a very sharp Chef's knife to make thin slices.)

Put a large steamer into a large pot with the water level just below it. Over high heat, bring the water to a boil and then add the squash slices to the rack. The slices will be overlapping and piled on top of each other. (If your pile of squash slices is super high however, you will have an easier time if you steam them in two batches.) Cover the pot and steam until the slices are tender, but not too tender! They should be bendable, but not soft. This should take about 5 minutes. Cooking times will vary depending on the size of the slices and the pot. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 350°F, and adjust a rack to the top third of the oven.

Add about 1 cup of the sauce to the bottom of a 9 X 13 X 3-inch baking pan, and spread it out evenly.

On top of the second layering, add final layer of the squash (sprinkling it with salt and pepper), the last of the ricotta mixture, topped with the remaining mozzarella.

Bake in the preheated 350°F oven for 30 minutes. The edges should be bubbling, and the top should be golden brown when it's done. If you notice it's getting too brown during the baking time, cover it lightly with foil. And if after 30 minutes, the top hasn't browned, place the pan under the broiler for about 30 seconds -- just to brown it.