Spinach Mushroom Lasagna

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I haven’t spent this much time on dinner for a while and I must say that I felt like I dirtied every pot and pan in my kitchen. That being said, it was well worth it. To quote my hubby, “This is really good lasagna.” He even repeated it again the next day and he’s not a leftovers fan.

This white lasagna requires boiling noodles, a spinach filling, a mushroom filling and a bechamel sauce.  Don’t let it intimidate you though.  Each component is super easy to make.  And it’s delicious!  (Although next time, I might try combining the spinach and mushrooms to make one filling mixture.)

Spinach Mushroom Lasagna
adapted from this Marth Stewart recipe I found on Is It EDible?

For the spinach filling:

1 T butter
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 lbs spinach leaves, chopped
10 oz ricotta cheese– I added more cheese to make up for the missing lb of spinach

For the mushroom filling:

1 T butter
8 oz mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/4 c chicken stock
2 T chopped fresh parsley

For the sauce:

4 T butter
3 T flour
1 12 oz can evaporated milk + enough chicken stock to make 2 c of liquid
1 t salt
1/2 t black pepper
1/4 c shredded mozzarella
dash of nutmeg

For the rest of the lasagna:

12 lasagna noodles, cooked
8 oz shredded mozzarella

1. To make the spinach filling: Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook until slightly golden. Add the spinach and cook for 5 minutes or until wilted. Drain well. Mix in the ricotta and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.
2. To make the mushroom filling: Melt butter in a separate large pan over med-lo heat. Add mushrooms and cook for 10 minutes. Pour in the chicken stock and cook for 5 more minutes. Remove from the heat and add parsley. Set aside.
3. To make the sauce: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over med-lo heat. Slowly add the flour, whisking to form a roux or paste. Cook the roux for about a minute, whisking constantly. Gradually pour in the milk as you whisk to avoid lumps. Cook for 5 minutes or until thickened. Stir in the salt, pepper, nutmeg and grated cheese.
4. Preheat the oven to 350. Assemble the lasagna in a lightly greased pan (I used a 9 x 13 which was way too big. Next time I’ll use an 8 x 11). Lay down 3 noodles and top with 1/2 of the spinach filling. Ladle 1/4 of the sauce over the spinach. Lay down 3 more noodles and top with all of the mushroom filling. Ladle 1/4 of the sauce over the mushrooms. Lay down another 3 noodles and top with the other 1/2 of the spinach filling. Ladle 1/4 of the sauce over the spinach. Top with the last 3 noodles, ladle the remaining sauce and evenly sprinkle the shredded mozzarella on top.
5. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil after 30 minutes and continue to bake an additional 15 – 20 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and golden brown.

I had to make a few modifications because I didn’t have everything on hand. Chris also detests shiitake mushrooms so I left those out. I should have added more regular mushrooms to make up for that. My mushroom layer turned out really thin.

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Filed under Italian, pasta, vegetarian

Tags: bechamel, lasagna, mushroom, spinach