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1
Place the dried mushrooms in a glass measuring cup and pour 2 cups boiling water over them.
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2
Let soak 30 minutes, while you prepare the other ingredients.
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3
Place a strainer over a bowl, line it with cheesecloth or paper towels, and drain the mushrooms.
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4
Squeeze the mushrooms over the strainer to extract all the flavorful juices.
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5
If using shiitakes, cut away and discard the stems.
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6
Then rinse the mushrooms, away from the bowl with the soaking liquid, until they are free of sand.
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7
Squeeze dry and set aside.
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8
Chop coarsely.
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9
Measure out 1 1/2 cups of the soaking liquid and set aside.
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10
Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium heat and add the shallots or onion.
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11
Cook, stirring often, until tender, 3 to 5 minutes.
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12
Add the garlic, stir together for about 30 seconds, then add the fresh and reconstituted mushrooms and salt to taste.
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13
Cook, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to soften and to sweat, about 5 minutes.
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14
Add the wine and turn the heat to high.
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15
Cook, stirring, until the liquid boils down and glazes the mushrooms, 5 to 10 minutes.
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16
Add thyme and stir in the mushroom soaking liquid.
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17
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.
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18
Remove from the heat, stir in some freshly ground pepper, taste and adjust salt.
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19
Meanwhile, make the bechamel.
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20
Heat the oil over medium heat in a heavy saucepan.
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21
Add the shallot or onion and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes.
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22
Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until smooth and bubbling, but not browned.
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23
It should have the texture of wet sand.
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24
Whisk in the milk all at once and bring to a simmer, whisking all the while, until the mixture begins to thicken.
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25
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.
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26
Season with salt and pepper.
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27
Strain while hot into the pan with the mushrooms.
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28
Assemble the lasagna.
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29
Heat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
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30
Oil or butter a 2-quart rectangular baking dish.
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31
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.
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32
Cook only until flexible, and using tongs or a skimmer, remove from the pan and set on a kitchen towel to drain.
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33
Spoon a thin layer of bechamel and mushrooms over the bottom of the dish.
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34
Top with a layer of noodles.
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35
Spread a ladleful of the mushroom/bechamel mixture over the noodles and top with a layer of Parmesan.
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36
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/bechamel mixture topped with Parmesan.
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37
Cover with foil and place in the oven.
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38
Bake 30 minutes.
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39
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.
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40
Serve hot or warm.
