Wild Mushroom Lasagna with Zippy Sicilian Flair

Wild mushroom lasagna is writ large on my history with The Grill-Meister, and it’s high time for us to share it with you here in the blog. This is a marvelous dish, redolent with garlic, rich with wild mushroom umami and rounded out by the rustic and comforting marinara. The cheese doesn’t hurt, either.

Zippy Sicilian Wild Mushroom Lasagna

Ingredients

• 9 lasagna noodles
• 2 lbs. mixed wild mushrooms (shiitake, oyster, cremini, portobello, lion’s mane, chanterelle, hen of the woods, etc.), cleaned and roughly chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 tbsp Zippy Sicilian seasoning (plus more to taste), or your favorite Italian spice mix
• 1 tsp kosher salt, divided
• 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 15 oz ricotta cheese
• 1 large egg
• 2½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese (about 12 oz total, divided)
• ½ cup finely shredded Asiago, Parmesan or Romano cheese
• 5–6 cups marinara sauce (see our Glover Gardens recipe for homemade – recommended!)
• Fresh basil or parsley, for garnish (optional)

Cooking Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
2. Cook the noodles: Boil 9 lasagna noodles in salted water until al dente, following package directions. Drain and lay flat on a baking sheet in layers, separating with lightly sprayed wax paper to prevent sticking.
3. Sauté the mushrooms: In a large skillet, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Add 3 cloves minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add 2 lbs. chopped mushrooms and sauté until deeply browned and their liquid evaporates, 10–12 minutes. Season with 1 tbsp Zippy Sicilian seasoning, ½ tsp kosher salt, and ½  tsp black pepper. Remove from heat.
4. Make the ricotta mixture: In a medium bowl, combine 15 oz ricotta, 1 large egg, 1 cup shredded mozzarella, ½ cup Asiago, ½ tsp kosher salt, ½  tsp black pepper, and 1 tbsp Zippy Sicilian seasoning. Stir until smooth.
5. Assemble the lasagna: Spread 1 cup marinara sauce over the bottom of a 9×13 baking dish. Place 3 noodles in a single layer. Using a slotted spoon for the mushrooms, top with ⅓ of the mushroom mixture, and then with a regular spoon, add 1½ cups marinara, and ⅓ of the ricotta mixture. Repeat twice more (noodles, mushrooms, marinara, ricotta). Finish with the last 3 noodles, 1½–2 cups marinara, and the remaining 1 cup mozzarella sprinkled evenly on top.
6. Bake: Cover the dish loosely with foil (sprayed with cooking spray so it doesn’t stick to the cheese). Bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake another 20 minutes, until the top is bubbling and golden.
7. Rest and serve: Let the lasagna rest for 15 minutes before slicing. Garnish with fresh basil or parsley if desired.

Notes

• I recommend traditional noodles rather than no-boil. They hold their structure better, help the layers cling together, and give the lasagna its classic texture. This article explains why—and after testing both, I’m a convert.
• This vegetarian meal can also be gluten-free if you use gluten-free pasta.
• Even easier: if you’re in a hurry, don’t spend time making our (fab) marinara; just use two 24-ounce jars of pasta sauce (I won’t tell).
• You can use mushrooms from the grocery store, but the best bet is to get them from your local farmers’ market. They will have a nice variety, the product will be fresh and sustainable, and you’ll be putting your money directly into the local economy. Our mushrooms for this fab dish came from The Mushroom Factory, a local purveyor that sells mushrooms at our famers’ market here in Tomball, Texas.
• This is a hearty dish, so any side dish should be light and refreshing, like the Two-Bean Salad with Mint and Lemon we created to go with it. You might also want some garlic bread to sop up the yummy mushroom-laden sauce.

Voila!

Check out how fab this recipe looks! Don’t you just want a big plate of it right now???

Join Us in the Kitchen

We didn’t get pics of the ‘shrooms cooking, but I captured the mouthwatering process of layering the lasagna love. The Grill-Meister had the fun job of assembling our masterpiece, while I did the camera work.

The Backstory, Which is Also the Love Story

Right after we started dating back in 2006, and the first time I was invited to his home, The Grill-Meister made dinner for me. He had a ‘recipe’ for Wild Mushroom Lasagna from an old issue of Men’s Health magazine and knew it would be a winner. When I arrived, I was greeted with not just a kiss but the tantalizing garlic-heavy aroma of his lasagna bubbling happily in the oven and a glass of wine. He had my number, for sure.

Food is love, I’ve always said. Wine makes it even better.

It was so romantic to have him cook for me, and the lasagna was delicious! His culinary gambit successfully hooked me, and we became an ITEM. It’s 19 years now since we started dating, and we celebrated our 17th anniversary in June.

It Was a Cryptic Recipe

Take a quick glance at the recipe below and you’ll note that the instructions for Make Her Fall in Love Wild Mushroom Lasagna are rather cryptic. It has been difficult for Tom to replicate that marvelous dish over the years, because the instructions are negligible, the amounts a bit vague and the seasoning altogether nonexistent.

Creating a Repeatable Recipe with Some Glover Gardens Winners: Zippy Sicilian and Our Marinara

All these years later, we decided it was time to standardize. We put our heads together, invited my sister-from-another-mother/ex-sister-in-law/friend over to help, and set about creating our own version of Wild Mushroom Lasagna with a ‘real’ recipe that would be repeatably good. We incorporated my Zippy Sicilian spice mix to liven it up, and used our Zippy Sicilian Marinara as the basis for the sauce.

Every time we make this dish, I’ll remember how enchanted I was the night the Grill-Meister first cooked it for me. And now, all these years later, we’re making new memories with this upgraded recipe that makes enough to feed a family, with enough to box up leftovers.

Let me know how this love-worthy dish works for you.

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