New York Times Spinach And Mushroom Lasagna Recipes

SPINACH LASAGNA

Steps:

• If you're using dried pasta, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. If you're using fresh pasta sheets, cut them into long wide noodles approximately 3 inches by 13 inches, or a size that will fit into your lasagna dish. Cook the noodles (6 at a time for dried noodles) until they are tender but still underdone (they will finish cooking as the lasagna bakes); fresh pasta will take only a minute. Drain and then lay the noodles flat on a towel so they won't stick.
• Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a rectangular baking dish with the olive oil, add a large dollop of tomato sauce and spread it around. Put a layer of noodles (use four) in the dish, trimming any overhanging edges; top with a layer of tomato sauce, one-third of the spinach, and one-fourth of the ricotta (use your fingers to spread it evenly), the mozzarella and the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper if desired.
• Repeat the layers twice, and top with the remaining noodles, tomato sauce, ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan; the top should be covered with cheese; add more ricotta and Parmesan as needed. (The lasagna may be made ahead to this point, wrapped tightly and refrigerated for up to a day or frozen. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.)
• Bake until the lasagna is bubbling and the cheese is melted and lightly browned on top, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest a few minutes before serving, or cool completely, cover well, and refrigerate for up to 3 days, or freeze.

MUSHROOM LASAGNA

Steps:

• Place the dried mushrooms in a glass measuring cup and pour 2 cups boiling water over them. Let soak 30 minutes, while you prepare the other ingredients. Place a strainer over a bowl, line it with cheesecloth or paper towels, and drain the mushrooms. Squeeze the mushrooms over the strainer to extract all the flavorful juices. If using shiitakes, cut away and discard the stems. Then rinse the mushrooms, away from the bowl with the soaking liquid, until they are free of sand. Squeeze dry and set aside. Chop coarsely. Measure out 1 1/2 cups of the soaking liquid and set aside.
• Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add the shallots or onion. Cook, stirring often, until tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic, stir together for about 30 seconds, then add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms and salt to taste. Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to soften and to sweat, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and turn the heat to high. Cook, stirring, until the liquid boils down and glazes the mushrooms, 5 to 10 minutes. Add thyme and stir in the mushroom soaking liquid. Bring to a simmer, add salt, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring often, until the mushrooms are thoroughly tender and fragrant and the surrounding broth has reduced by a little more than half, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in some freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt.
• Meanwhile, make the béchamel. Heat the oil over medium heat in a heavy saucepan. Add the shallot or onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until smooth and bubbling, but not browned. It should have the texture of wet sand. Whisk in the milk all at once and bring to a simmer, whisking all the while, until the mixture begins to thicken. Turn the heat to very low and simmer, stirring often with a whisk and scraping the bottom and edges of the pan with a rubber spatula, for 10 to 15 minutes, until the sauce is thick and has lost its raw-flour taste. Season with salt and pepper. Strain while hot into the pan with the mushrooms.
• Assemble the lasagna. Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Oil or butter a 2-quart rectangular baking dish. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt generously and add 3 or 4 lasagna noodles, just the number you need for one layer. Cook only until flexible, and using tongs or a skimmer, remove from the pan and set on a kitchen towel to drain. Spoon a thin layer of béchamel and mushrooms over the bottom of the dish. Top with a layer of noodles. Spread a ladleful of the mushroom/béchamel mixture over the noodles and top with a layer of Parmesan. Cook the next layer of noodles and continue to repeat the layers (I get three layers in my pan), ending with a layer of the mushroom/béchamel mixture topped with Parmesan. Cover with foil and place in the oven. Bake 30 minutes. Remove the foil, and if you want the edges of the noodles crispy and the top lightly browned, continue to bake uncovered for another 5 to 10 minutes. Serve hot or warm.

LASAGNA WITH SPINACH AND WILD MUSHROOMS

Steps:

• Heat a large frying pan over high heat and add the wet spinach. Wilt in the water left on the leaves, stirring until all of the spinach has collapsed in the pan. Transfer to a bowl of cold water, then drain and squeeze out excess water, taking up spinach by the handful. Chop fine and season with a little bit of salt. Set aside. (Alternatively, blanch for 20 seconds in salted boiling water).
• Clean and dry skillet and heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over high heat. Add mushrooms. Let sear without moving for about 30 seconds, then toss and stir in the pan until they begin to sweat, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn heat to medium and add minced garlic and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and continue to cook over medium heat until mushrooms are soft, 3 to 5 more minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Remove from heat.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a rectangular baking dish. Blend ricotta cheese with egg, water, nutmeg, and salt and pepper to taste. Stir in spinach.
• Spread a small spoonful of marinara sauce in a thin layer over the bottom of the baking dish. Top with a layer of lasagna noodles. Top the noodles with a thin layer of ricotta. Spoon on a few dollops then spread it with an offset or rubber spatula. Top ricotta with half the mushrooms, then top with a layer of marinara sauce and a layer of Parmesan. Repeat layers, then add a final layer of lasagna noodles topped with marinara sauce and Parmesan. Drizzle on remaining olive oil.
• Cover baking dish tightly with foil and place in the oven. Bake 40 minutes, until noodles are tender and mixture is bubbling. Remove from heat and allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

LASAGNA WITH SPINACH AND ROASTED ZUCCHINI

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Toss the zucchini with the olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and top with the slices of zucchini. Place in the oven and roast 8 minutes. Remove from the oven, close the oven door and, using tongs, flip the zucchini slices over. Return to the oven for 5 minutes, or until the zucchini is tender when pierced with a knife and browned in spots. Remove from the oven and reduce the heat to 350 degrees.
• Steam the spinach for 2 to 3 minutes above an inch of boiling water, just until it wilts. Rinse briefly with cold water, squeeze out excess water and chop coarsely.
• Blend the ricotta cheese with the egg, water, cinnamon, salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Lightly oil a rectangular baking pan. Spread a small spoonful of tomato sauce to cover the bottom of the pan. Top with a layer of lasagna noodles. Top the noodles with a thin layer of ricotta, then a layer of zucchini and spinach, a layer of tomato sauce and a layer of Parmesan. Repeat the layers, ending with a layer of lasagna noodles topped with tomato sauce and Parmesan.
• Cover the baking dish tightly with foil and place in the oven. Bake 40 minutes, until the noodles are tender and the mixture is bubbling. Uncover and, if you wish, bake another 10 minutes, until the top begins to brown. Remove from the heat and allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.

HOME/MADE MUSHROOM LASAGNA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350. Place a large sauté pan over medium-high heat and add 1/4 cup of the olive oil or herb oil. When it begins to shimmer, add half of the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until translucent. Add mushrooms and toss to coat, then cook until they begin to color but are still plump, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add white wine to deglaze pan and allow to cook down into a syrup, approximately 5 to 7 minutes. Put the mushrooms into a large bowl and reserve.
• Meanwhile, in another bowl, toss the radicchio with 1/4 cup olive oil or herb oil and season with salt and pepper. Spread the strips out onto a baking pan and place in the oven until the strips are lightly browned around the edges, approximately 15 minutes. Combine with mushrooms and reserve.
• Make the béchamel. Place a saucepan over medium heat and melt the butter. When it foams, add the rest of the shallots and cook until they begin to turn translucent. Add the garlic and stir to combine, then cook until the garlic has started to soften. Sprinkle flour over the top and stir to combine, then cook gently until the mixture has turned light brown and gives off a nutty scent, approximately 10 minutes. Add milk to the mixture, whisking all the while, until the sauce is thick and creamy. Add the nutmeg and 1/4 cup of grated Gruyère and 1/4 cup of grated Fontina, then stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Reserve a cup of béchamel. Pour the rest over the mixture of mushrooms and radicchio, and stir to combine. Add truffle oil, if using.
• Assemble lasagna. Spread plain béchamel across the bottom of a 9- by-13-inch baking pan. Place a layer of lasagna sheets across the sauce, being careful not to overlap. Spread a generous layer of mushroom mixture on top of the pasta, and follow with some grated Fontina and Gruyère. Put another layer of pasta above the cheese, and top with smoked mozzarella. Repeat until the pasta is gone and the pan is full. Top with remaining cheeses and a generous amount of grated Parmesan. Cover with a buttered sheet of aluminum foil and place in the oven for 45 minutes. Remove foil and cook until top is golden and bubbling.

NEW YORK TIMES SPINACH AND MUSHROOM LASAGNA

Steps:

• 1. Cook the noodles (6 at a time for dried noodles) until they are tender but still underdone (they will finish cooking as the lasagna bakes); fresh pasta will take only a minute. Drain and then lay the noodles flat on a towel so they won't stick. 2. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Grease a rectangular baking dish with the olive oil, add a large dollop of tomato sauce and spread it around. Put a layer of noodles (use four) in the dish, trimming any overhanging edges; top with a layer of tomato sauce, one-third of the spinach and mushrooms, and one-fourth of the ricotta (use your fingers to spread it evenly) , the mozzarella and the Parmesan. Sprinkle some salt and pepper between the layers of tomato sauce and spinach if desired. Repeat the layers twice, and top with the remaining noodles, tomato sauce, ricotta, mozzarella and Parmesan; the top should be covered with cheese; add more ricotta and Parmesan as needed. (The lasagna may be made ahead to this point, wrapped tightly and refrigerated for up to a day or frozen. Bring to room temperature before proceeding.) 3. Bake until the lasagna is bubbling and the cheese is melted and lightly browned on top, about 30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let rest a few minutes before serving

SPINACH AND MUSHROOM LASAGNA

Steps:

• Stir the ricotta, spinach, mushrooms, parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, combine the mozzarella and parmesan.
• Spread about 1/2 cup marinara sauce in a thin layer in a 6-quart slow cooker. Cover with a single layer of uncooked lasagna noodles (4 to 6 noodles), breaking them as needed to fit. Spread half of the ricotta mixture over the noodles. Top with about one-third of the remaining sauce, then sprinkle with about one-third of the mozzarella mixture. Repeat the layers (noodles, ricotta, sauce, mozzarella mixture). Top with the remaining noodles, then the remaining sauce and mozzarella mixture.
• Cover and cook on low, 4 hours. Uncover and let rest 15 minutes so the excess liquid is absorbed.