Mushroom, pesto and spinach lasagne recipe

This extra special dish is a well worth the effort. The pesto is the secret ingredient that gives it that special flavour

Ingredients

• 450g (1lb) fresh spinach leaves
• 40g (1½ oz) butter, plus extra for frying
• 250g (9oz) chestnut mushrooms, sliced
• 40g (1½ oz) flour
• 300ml (½ pt) hot milk
• 150ml (¼ pt) hot vegetable stock
• ½ tsp grated fresh nutmeg
• 75g (3oz) fresh Parmesan, grated
• 145g (5oz) fresh pesto
• 100-150g (4-5oz) fresh lasagne sheets
• 1 litre (1¾ pt) square or rectangular dish

Method

1. Place the spinach in a colander in the sink and pour over a kettleful of boiling water. Leave to wilt and then, when cool enough to handle, squeeze out the excess water and roughly chop.
2. Heat a knob of butter in a frying pan and fry the mushrooms until golden. In a separate saucepan, melt the butter over a medium heat, add the flour, stir and turn the heat down slightly. Add the milk and stock to the flour mixture bit by bit until the mixture thickens, whisking all the time. Once it's all incorporated, cook for a few minutes, then stir in the grated nutmeg, 50g (2oz) of the Parmesan, season to taste and remove from the heat.
3. In the large dish, layer the spinach, then the mushrooms, white sauce and a few tablespoons of pesto, then cover with a layer of lasagne sheets. Repeat until the dish is full, ending with a layer of white sauce with a few blobs of pesto. Sprinkle over the rest of the Parmesan and season with black pepper. Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (160°C fan oven, 350°F, gas mark 4) for 25 mins or until golden and bubbling.