Since I’ve been playing with my new toy lately, I’ve been thinking about how to make different things with the unlimited pastas I can now create. Ian keeps a stash of dried mushrooms on hand — purchased at a discount — and since I have always been a fan of mushrooms in lasagna, mushroom lasagna noodles seemed like a given. I powdered two different kinds — shiitake and king oyster — and mixed them in with my flour. I then sauteed a third kind — white buttons, nothing exciting — with some spicy italian sausage, to make the sauce more substantial. The result was hearty, delicious, and unique. The mushroom powder made the pasta a bit difficult to work with (one piece reached a state of over-workedness before it actually came together enough to be used, and had to be discarded) but it was something that even I, as a novice pasta maker, was able to work around.

Three Mushroom Lasagna

Pasta:

1 c semolina flour

1 c unbleached all-purpose flour (plus more for working)

1 c powdered dried mushrooms, any variety

3 eggs

2 tbsp water

In a bowl or on a work surface, make a pile of the mushroom powder and flours. Make a well in the middle and add eggs. Work together to form a dough, adding water as needed. Work through a pasta machine until it holds together well and reaches your desired thickness. Place noodles whole on a rack to dry until you are ready to use it.

The rest of it:

1 jar tomato-based pasta sauce, your choice

1 lb hot italian sausage

1 basket sliced, cleaned white mushrooms

1 large container ricotta cheese

2 eggs

1/2 c parmesan cheese

1 bag shredded mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 350°F. In a bowl, combine eggs, ricotta and parmesan and set aside. IN a skillet, begin to cook sausage until some oil has rendered out of it, then add mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms are soft, then add pasta sauce and combine well; put a small amount of sauce mixture in the bottom of a 9×11 baking dish and set the rest aside. In a large pot, bring water to a boil and salt well. Cook the noodles one or two at a time. Cover sauce in bottom of baking dish with noodles, then smooth half of the cheese mixture over them and top with 1/3 of the remaining sauce. Cook more noodles and add another layer of those, followed by the remaining cheese mixture and half of the remaining sauce mixture. Cook and place a final layer of noodles, then remaining sauce. Top with mozzarella and bake until cheese is bubbling and slightly golden brown.