Mushroom Lasagna

Finshed mushroom lasagna!

The Spice household has gone away to the mountains in Virginia for Easter weekend, and while other members of the family have productive things to do (sorry Gina, that 25 pg essay you’re writing next to me looks fascinating), I decided to use this time and my parent’s food budget to make delicious things for all of us.  I wanted to make a large dish that I usually wouldn’t make for myself, and following the success of my vegetable lasagna decided to go the baked-pasta/lasagna route again.  I found this recipe while browsing through one of my idol Ina Garten’s cookbooks, and thought it fit the bill perfectly.  Once I saw that Smitten Kitchen has also tried and had great success with this, I was completely sold.

Mmmmushrooms

To say the lasagna lived up to expectations would be an understatement- it was delicious and the four of us easily polished off the entire thing.  This is simpler than most lasagnas, as the layers are only a bechamel sauce, sauteed mushrooms, and Parmesan, but the simplicity really lets all of the flavors meld together beautifully.  The creamy sauce and Parmesan highlight the mushrooms and I didn’t feel like it was missing meat or tomato sauce at all.  This took about 2 hours to make start to finish, but only about an hour of preparation before it goes in the oven, and this was without any help chopping or assembling from my dear family.  The one complaint I have was that it used quite a few pots and pans for something that seems so simple- this was mainly because Ina suggests you heat the milk before making the bechamel, which adds a step but is probably necessary when making such a large quantity of sauce. I added a clove of garlic as per Smitten Kitchen’s suggestion and did a mixture of cremini and portobello mushrooms, but otherwise kept the recipe intact.

Mushroom Lasagna
From Ina Garten

Equipment: Knife, Baking dish (8×12 or 9×13), large pot, saucepan, frying pan

Ingredients:
Salt
Olive oil
3/4 pound dried lasagna noodles
1 large clove garlic, minced
4 cups whole milk
3/4 cup (12 tablespoons or 1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, divided
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 pounds cremini or portobello mushrooms (I used 3 portobellos and the rest cremini)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat the oven to 375 (I waited to do this until after the noodles were cooked and bechamel started).  Bring a large pot of water to boil, with some salt and oil.  Add the noodles and cook for 10 minutes.  Drain and set aside- if you feel they are going to stick a lot drizzle a bit more oil on them once drained.

Make the bechamel/white sauce: Bring milk and garlic to a simmer in a saucepan or heat in the microwave.  Melt one stick of butter in a large pot (I reused the pot the noodles cooked in). When the foam from the butter has subsided, add the flour over low heat, and whisk constantly for about a minute.  Start adding the milk into this mixture a little bit at a time.  When you add the first bit of milk, the mixture may clump and you will think you have gone wrong.  You haven’t.  Just keep adding the milk and stirring after each addition until the milk is all added and you have a thick white sauce.  Add salt, pepper, and nutmeg, and adjust seasonings to taste.  Take off heat and set aside.

Prepare mushrooms:  Discard the stems of the portobellos and trim stems of creminis. Slice mushrooms into 1/4 inch thick pieces.  Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter in a frying pan or saucepan, and sautee half of the mushrooms with a pinch of salt for about 5 minutes, until they are releasing some liquid.  Remove those mushrooms into a bowl and repeat with 2 more tablespoons olive oil, butter, and remaining mushrooms.

To assemble:  Spread some sauce in the bottom of your baking dish, followed by a layer of noodles.  Then spread 1/4 of remaining sauce on top of noodles, followed by 1/3 of the mushrooms, and 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese.  Repeat this twice.  For the final layer, top the noodles with remaining white sauce and another 1/4-1/3 cup Parmesan cheese.  Bake for 45 minutes, until top is browned and sauce is bubbling.  If you can resist digging in right away, let sit at room temperature for 10-15 minutes.  We did not let it rest and it was still excellent.

Most Perfectest Mac and Cheese Ever

Mac/Gnocchi and Cheese!

I am a big fan of mac and cheese, in basically any incarnation, from the instant stuff from a box (although since I started making my own I haven’t gone back to the powdered stuff, however easy it may be), to fancy-pants mac and cheese with bacon and truffles, etc, at top restaurants.  This shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone who knows me, as clearly I love anything that starts with half a stick of butter and ends with a cup of cheese.  I started making skillet mac and cheese last year, with farfalle as the pasta, but this year I have had a mac and cheese revelation of sorts, and started making it with gnocchi instead of traditional pasta.  While it is true that this takes out the “mac” part of mac and cheese, it makes an unbelievably good companion to the cheese sauce, and somehow doesn’t feel too heavy to eat a whole plate of.  Even if you are basically eating potato pasta and cheese.

Various sorts of deliciousness

Gnocchi is easy and cheap to buy in sealed packs at most grocery stores, and only takes about 4 minutes to cook.  I still make a skillet version, which means I toss the gnocchi with the cheese in a frying pan, then top it with more cheese and put it in the oven to bake.  This recipe is very adaptable to whatever your own tastes are- I put some fresh herbs like rosemary and basil in mine, and also a bit of pesto to up the flavor, but you can leave all of that out or go experimenting with other spices and herbs.  You can also use basically whatever cheese you like, although I do usually use at least two different kinds.  Gruyere is amazing but pretty expensive, however I, being a lover of baked potatoes and grilled cheese sandwiches, almost always have my parents buy me some when they are here.  This time I used mainly cheddar (DEVON cheddar from Trader Joes, which is the best cheddar that is, and I’m not only saying that because my family is from Devon), a bit of Gruyere, and Parmesan for the topping.  Finally, if you’ve never made a roux before, which is the flour-and-butter starter for any white pasta sauce, don’t be too scared.  The key is to keep the heat on medium-low and whisk, whisk, whisk, so that the flour doesn’t burn.

The beginnings of the cheese sauce

Gnocchi Mac and Cheese
Makes 4 side servings or 2 main course servings

Equipment: Medium sized frying pan or skillet, medium saucepan, whisk, wooden spoon

Ingredients:
1 pound (1 packet) store bought gnocchi
1/2 cup cheddar cheese
1/4 cup Gruyere cheese
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
3/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon flour
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon pre-made pesto
1/4 cup breadcrumbs
A few fresh basil leaves
About half a sprig of fresh rosemary
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375.  Prepare gnocchi according to package directions, drain and set aside (it will probably stick together, but just pull it apart before you mix it into the cheese sauce).  Meanwhile, start making the roux for the sauce.  Melt butter in the frying pan over medium heat, then add garlic and cook for about 30 seconds longer.  Sprinkle in the flour and whisk until it starts to bubble.  Then slowly pour in the milk and continue whisking until a thick sauce is formed. Keep on very low heat or take the pan off the heat and add in the Dijon, pesto, and cheddar and Gruyere cheeses. Once all the cheese is melted, season with salt and Pepper.

Add gnocchi to the frying pan and toss to coat with cheese sauce. Add in chopped basil and rosemary, and sprinkle the Parmesan and breadcrumbs on top.  Bake until top is golden and cheese is bubbling, about 20-25 minutes.