Spinach & Mushroom Lasagna

(photo from Jesse - mine looked very similar, so since I am sans-camera, I'll show you her pic!)

Last night I made lasagna. I was SO hungry. I didn't feel like cooking, but I had the ingredients in the fridge that needed cooking, and really, I was starving. Unfortunately, the process of cooking and then baking probably took an hour and a half or more, but it's all good. I found this idea on Jesse's blog, "We All Go Poopie" (that name cracks me up) and decided to figure out how to make it myself. She doesn't actually have a recipe on her blog, just a run-through of her ingredients, so I'll try to share my process with you. :)

Lasagna:
lasagna noodles
shredded mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
mascarpone cheese (ricotta will also work well)
shiitake mushrooms (any kind will probably work)
fresh sage
2 bags fresh spinach
1/2 onion
salt & pepper to taste

Bechamel sauce:
1 1/2 T butter
2 T flour
1 C milk
1/2 t salt
1/8 t nutmeg

First, I made a VERY tasty Bechamel sauce. (I didn't know what that was, so I had to look up a recipe.) I melted 1 1/2 T butter in a saucepan, and added a couple tablespoons of flour. I cooked it until it turned golden brown, then added 1 C heavy cream. (The recipe called for milk, but I didn't have any. I think the heavy cream made it even more decadent!) I let it boil, then cooked it for about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. I removed it from the heat, and added 1/2 t salt and 1/8 t nutmeg. Then I let it sit until I was ready for it.
Next, I sauteed shiitake mushrooms and fresh sage (from my garden!) in butter. In a separate pan, I sauteed chopped onions in olive oil, and then added two bags of fresh spinach leaves. After they wilted, I added salt & pepper.

Now for the fun part. I spread a little of the Bechamel sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 baking pan, then layered no-bake lasagna noodles on top. I spread a bit more Bechamel on top of the noodles, and then spread a third of the spinach on top. This was followed by half of the mushrooms. Then I scattered dollops of mascarpone cheese on top, followed by mozzarella and Parmesan. I put more lasagna noodles on top, and repeated the previous steps. The top layer was just spinach, mozzarella, and Parmesan.

I covered the lasagna with foil, and baked at 375 for 55 minutes. I took the foil off and baked for 5 more minutes, til the cheese was golden.

Yum!

I think it would have been better with chicken, but Mike thought it was pretty good as-is. I like the ease of the no-bake noodles, but I think next time I'll stick with the regular kind.