Porcini and Prosciutto Lasagna
I don’t think it’s physically possible to have too many lasagna recipes in your pocket, and this lasagna in particular takes many of the classic components such as a bechamel sauce and, of course, pasta, with a few additional ingredients of dried porcini mushrooms and prosciutto for a wonderful blend of salt and umami richness.
This lasagna comes from the Pasta Grannies cookbook called Comfort Cooking, not surprisingly, and comes straight from the province of Macerata where they also cook up an end-of-harvest meal for the hardworking farmers that involves simmering chicken offal, including a stuffed chicken neck, in tomato sauce and incorporating that into a lasagna…I did not think you were ready for that kind of recipe. Luckily, this porcini and prosciutto lasagna is much easier and more elegant.
Now, there are recipes that include a generous shaving of winter black truffle, and if you can get ahold of those black beauties then have at it, you’ll want to shave them on as you layer the lasagna, it makes for a really nice Sunday lunch.
Serves 6-8
Prep time: 2 hours, Cook time: 50-60 Mins
Difficulty: Intermediate
For the Sauce:
1 3/4oz dried porcini mushrooms
4 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the pan
7oz prosciutto (thick sliced if possible), Diced small
1/2 cup dry white wine
Salt and Freshly cracked black pepper, to taste
For the Bechamel:
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1/3 cup flour
5 cups whole milk
Salt
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
For the Pasta*:
7oz (1 3/4 cups) 00 or all purpose flour
3 1/2 oz (2/3 cups) semolina flour
1 1/2 tbsp butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 tbsp marsala wine
A generous pinch of salt
2 large eggs
To Assemble:
3 1/2 oz grated Parmigiano Reggiano
*I will not give you a dirty look if you would like to use dried lasagna sheets for this recipe.
Step 1: Make the Sauce
Rinse the porcinis under cold water to remove any surface dirt, then place into a heatproof bowl and cover with hot, almost boiling water. (About 1 1/2 cups of water should do the trick) Let them steep and rehydrate for about 10 minutes, then remove the porcinis from the soaking water and chop fine.
Hold onto that flavorful mushroom water.
Heat the oil in a wide pan and add the prosciutto, then cook over medium-low heat until it just starts to change color. (Be careful not to overdo it, or the prosciutto will be too salty and dry)
Deglaze the pan with the white wine, and let it cook another minute to let the alcohol evaporate, then add the chopped porcinis and the reserved water. (Strain that water to catch any residual dirt. I doubt that your guests want to eat dirt) Simmer over low heat for about 10-15 minutes, or until the mushrooms are soft and the liquid has reduced. Season with salt and pepper to taste, then remove from the heat.
Step 2: Make the Bechamel sauce
Melt down the butter in a saucepan, then dump in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for about a minute to get rid of any raw flour taste.
Slowly pour in the milk, stopping now and then to whisk out any clumps of flour, then cook for 3-4 minutes, whisking frequently, until the sauce thickens to the point where it can coat the back of a spoon. Season with salt and nutmeg to taste, then set aside.
(I would go easy on the salt in the bechamel as the prosciutto is quite salty)
Step 3: Make the Pasta
(I can’t count how many times I’ve made pasta on here, but this one will be done with a slight difference as I’m adding butter and marsala wine. One for extra richness and the other for flavor.)
Combine both flours and then dump onto a clean worksurface. Create a well in the center, then add the remaining pasta ingredients into the center.
Use a fork to beat the eggs and combine them with the other wet ingredients, then slowly add in the flour until you get a thick, tacky dough, using a bench scraper if needed to bring in the flour.
Knead the dough for about 5 minutes, adding more 00 or all purpose flour if needed, until the dough ball is smooth and somewhat elastic. Cover the dough and let it rest for at least 30 minutes.
Step 4: Roll out and cook the pasta
Bring a wide saucepan of salted water to a gentle simmer, don’t let it come to a boil, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F/180 C
Using a pasta roller or rolling pin, roll out the dough into very thin, almost see-through sheets (about 1-2mm thick). Cut the dough sheets into lengths that will fit into a 9x13 baking pan comfortably, keep in mind the pasta will get larger as it blanches.
Working with one or two at a time, lower the pasta sheets into the simmering water and cook for about 1-2 minutes, or until each sheet floats to the top of the water, then transfer to a bowl filled with ice water to stop the cooking process. Drain well before assembling the lasagna.
Step 5: Assemble and Bake
Spread some of the bechamel out into an even layer at the bottom of a lightly oiled 9x13 baking pan.
Lay a layer of pasta on top. Scatter the prosciutto and porcinis on top of the pasta, think of them as more of a seasoning than a layer. Spread on more bechamel followed by a sprinkling of grated Parmigiano.
Repeat this until you have at least 5-6 very thin layers of pasta and sauce, topping the final pasta layer with any remaining bechamel and cheese.
Bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes, or until the top is brown and slightly crunchy. Let it cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving.
