Mushroom Lasagna with Parmesan Béchamel

mushroomlasagnaparmesanbechamel This creamy, flavourful meatless white mushroom lasagna is made with layers of pasta, velvety Parmesan béchamel, rich and savoury mushroom ragù and melted Parmesan cheese. This is 100% comfort food and eating a plateful is like giving yourself a gigantic hug.

Parmesan Bechamel:
6 Tbsp. (3 oz) butter, cut into 6 pieces (84 g)
¼ cup all-purpose flour (30 g)
4 cups (1 qt) half-and-half cream
½ tsp. ground nutmeg
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
5 oz (1½ cups) Parmesan cheese, finely grated
½ cup fresh Italian (flat leaf) parsley, packed, chopped

Lasagna:
1 recipe Mushroom Ragù
12 oven ready no-boil lasagna noodles or 1 lb fresh pasta dough, rolled into sheets
5 oz (~ 1½ cups) Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
¼ cup parsley, freshly chopped, for sprinkling over the top of the lasagna

Make the Mushroom Ragù:
Mushroom ragù will take about an hour to prepare but can be made up to 5 days in advance.

Make the Parmesan Béchamel:
Add the butter to a 3 qt or larger saucepan and set it over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the flour, stirring constantly with a wire whisk. Cook, whisking constantly, for 2 minutes.

Add the half and half gradually, whisking constantly as you slowly pour it into the saucepan. Add the nutmeg and red pepper flakes and bring the sauce to a simmer.

Cook over medium-low heat, whisking frequently, until the béchamel is thickened and does not taste like raw flour, about 12 minutes. (The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon; see photos above.)

Remove the saucepan from the heat and whisk in 4.5 oz grated parmesan, stirring until the cheese is melted.

Stir the fresh parsley and the mushroom ragù into the béchamel. Add salt and pepper to taste, then cover and set aside. (*See notes below for make-ahead instructions.)

Make the Lasagna:
Heat the oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4). If using oven ready no-boil lasagna noodles, see the note below about pre-soaking them before layering them into the lasagna. If using fresh pasta, roll the pasta dough into thin sheets and then cut the sheets to fit the pan.

Layer #1: Spread a thin layer of the béchamel and mushroom mixture over the bottom of the dish. Lay ⅓ of the noodles in an even layer over the sauce. Spread ⅓ of the béchamel and mushroom mixture over the noodles and top with ⅓ of the cheese.

Layer #2: Add another layer of noodles. Spread ⅓ of the béchamel and mushroom mixture over the noodles and top with ⅓ of the cheese.

Layer #3: Lay the remaining noodles over the last layer, spread with the remaining béchamel and mushroom mixture and top with the remaining cheese.

Cover the pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 5-10 minutes, until the cheese across the top of the lasagna is melted and the sauce is bubbling around the edges of the pan.

Remove the lasagna from the oven and let stand for 5-10 minutes before slicing and serving. Sprinkle with more fresh parsley before serving.

Cook's Notes:

How to prepare oven ready no-boil noodles: Lay the noodles out in a 9x13" baking dish. Drizzle with the remaining 1 Tbsp. olive oil and sprinkle in 1 Tbsp. salt. Add enough very hot water (140°F/60°C) to cover the noodles. Swish the noodles around in the water and then let stand for 10 minutes, moving them around once or twice to ensure they don’t stick together. Remove the noodles from the water and lay them out on a clean kitchen towel. Pat dry with another towel or paper towels. Dump the water out of the baking dish and dry with a towel.
The Mushroom Ragù can be cooked up to 4 days before stirring it into the béchamel, assembling the lasagna and baking it. Parmesan béchamel can be made up to a day in advance of using it for this lasagna. Store it in the refrigerator in a covered container. Warm over low heat, whisking until smooth, then stir in the Mushroom Ragù. The assembled lasagna can be tightly covered and refrigerated for a day before baking.
Store leftover lasagna in the refrigerator in a covered container for 3 or 4 days. Reheat in an oven that's been heated to 325ºF (162ºC).
If using no-boil oven ready lasagna noodles, I recommend soaking the dried sheets of pasta for about 10 minutes in hot water. Pre-soaking the noodles prevents them from absorbing too much moisture from the béchamel sauce and will produce a creamier lasagna. To soak the noodles, simply lay them out in a baking dish, drizzle them with a bit of olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Then, add enough hot water to cover the noodles. Swish them around in the pan and then let them soak for 10 minutes. After soaking, simply lay the noodles out on a clean kitchen towel, blotting them with a paper towel to dry.
What kind of mushrooms should I use for this lasagna? I recommend using dried porcini or shiitake mushrooms and fresh cremini mushrooms. Using both dried and fresh mushrooms to make the ragù improves both the flavour and texture of the sauce. The only difference between white button mushrooms, cremini mushrooms and portobello mushrooms is their age. White button mushrooms are cultivated to be white, soft and harvested young. Cremini mushrooms are simply more mature versions of white button mushrooms and have a browner colour, firmer texture and better flavour. Portobello mushrooms are just the oldest version of the same mushroom.