Kale and Mushroom Lasagne

This lighter and more delicate lasagne can be made with a mix of cooking greens, not just kale (think collards). Yum.

Ingredients:

• 6 tbls unsalted butter

• 1/4 cup all purpose flour

• 2 cups chicken or veggie broth

• 1 cup whole or 2% milk

• kosher slat and freshly ground black peppers

• 1 pound (or more!) wild mushrooms, wiped clean and finely chopped

• 1 pound kale (roughly 3 bunches), thick ribs cut out and leaves cut into very thin strips, rinsed and shaken dry

• grated zest of one lemon

• 1 pound whole milk ricotta cheese

• One 9oz box no boil lasagne noodles

• 1 1/2 cups freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Melt 4 tablespoons of the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour, stir to make a smooth paste and cook for a minute or two so the raw flour flavor cooks out. Whisk in the broth and the milk. Bring to a boil (this mixture is called a veloute), whisking to eliminate lumps. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes to thicken slightly. Season lightly with salt and pepper (lightly if you used store bought broth as it can be saltier).

Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the sizzling stops, add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring and scraping the pan until all the moisture from the mushrooms has been released and evaporated and they begin to brown and stick a bit to the pan, 10-12 minutes. Scrape into a bowl and let cool slightly.

Return the skillet to the medium-high heat, add the kale, season lightly with salt and cook, tossing frequently until the kale is wilted and very tender. You may need to add a few splashes of water along the way if the pan gets dry. Taste and adjust the seasonings.

Stir the lemon zest into the ricotta in a bowl.

Heat the oven to 375. To assemble lasagna spread a bit less than half of the veloute in an even layer on the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Arrange the lasagne noodles in an even layer, breaking the noodles to fit as needed. Spread the mushrooms evenly over the noodles and then top with the kale, distributing it evenly.

Arrange a second layer of noodles , then top with evenly spaced dollops of the ricotta. Gently spread the dollops to make an even layer without disturbing the noodles. Add one more layer of the noodles, top with the remaining veoloute and sprinkle with parmigiano over the top.

Bake until the cheese is golden brown and the juices are bubbling around the edges, 40 -50 minutes. Let the lasagne cool for at least 20 minutes before cutting and serving.