Mushroom Lasagna with White Sauce
Ingredients
- 12 no-boil lasagna noodles, I prefer the Barilla brand
- 1 large clove garlic, minced
- 4 cups whole milk
- ¾ cup butter, divided
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 ½ pounds cremini or baby bella mushrooms, or a combination of both
- 1 ½ cups freshly grated Parmesan or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- For the white sauce, bring the milk and garlic to a simmer in a medium saucepan, or heat it in your microwave in a glass liquid measure, and set it aside.
- In a large saucepan, melt 1/2 cup (8 tablespoons or 1 stick) butter. Add the flour and cook for one minute over low heat, stirring constantly with a whisk or wooden spoon.
- Pour in the hot milk, a little at a time at first and whisking until combined. Once you’ve added half of it, you can add the second half all at once, along with 1 1/2 teaspoons table salt, the pepper, and nutmeg. Cook the white sauce over medium-low heat, stirring or whisking frequently, anywhere from 3 to 10 minutes, or until thick. Set aside.
- To prepare the mushrooms, slice the mushrooms 1/4-inch thick, trimming stems if desired (I left them on). In a large 12-inch skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the mushrooms with a couple pinches of salt and cook for about 5 minutes, until they are tender and release some of their juices. Stir occasionally to make sure they cook evenly.
- To assemble the lasagna, lightly coat with cooking spray the bottom and sides of a 9X13-inch baking dish. Spread 1/4 cup or so of the white sauce in the bottom of the dish. Arrange a layer of noodles on top (I used 3 no-boil noodles for each layer without overlapping them - just laying them next to each other), then more sauce (about 1/4 of what remains), 1/3 of the mushrooms and 1/3 or so cup of the grated cheese.
- Repeat two more times then top with a final layer of noodles, your remaining sauce and last 1/4 cup of cheese.
- Bake the lasagna for 45 minutes, or until top is browned and the sauce is bubbly. Remove from oven and let sit, lightly covered for 10-15 minutes before serving.
Notes
Noodles: if you don't care to use no-boil noodles or don't have them on hand, substitute regular lasagna noodles, boiling and draining them prior to assembling the lasagna.
Make Ahead Instructions: follow the recipe directions, letting the white sauce and mushrooms cool to room temperature (stirring the white sauce occasionally so it doesn't form a skin on top while cooling) before assembling. Cover the prepared lasagna with a layer of plastic wrap and refrigerate up to 12 hours before baking. Bake according to the recipe, adding 5-10 minutes if needed since it was chilled in the refrigerator