Yield: 6-8 servings.
6 tablespoons salted butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups milk
1 (16-ounce) can pumpkin
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish
2 teaspoons salt
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
½ pound fresh mushrooms, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot, minced
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 box no-boil lasagna noodles
Preheat oven to 350º. Prepare a 9×12-inch baking dish by evenly coating with olive oil or butter. Set aside. In a medium saucepan, heat 5 tablespoons of butter over medium-low heat until melted. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Over medium heat, cook until the mixture turns a light golden, sandy color, about 6 to 7 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat the milk in a separate pan until just about to boil. Add the hot milk to the butter mixture 1 cup at a time, whisking continuously until very smooth. Add pumpkin. Bring to a boil. Add ½ cup Parmesan cheese. Cook 10 minutes, stirring constantly, then remove from heat. Season with salt and nutmeg, and set aside until ready to use.
In a saucepan, heat remaining tablespoon of butter until melted. Add mushrooms, garlic, and shallot. Cook on medium heat 10 minutes.
In a separate mixing bowl, blend ricotta and remaining ½ cup Parmesan.
Ladle 1 cup of sauce into baking dish. Place one layer of lasagna noodles on top of sauce. Spread half of the cheese mixture on top of the noodles. Add a second layer of noodles. Layer with mushroom mixture. Top with 1 cup sauce. Add next layer of noodles, followed by remaining cheese mixture. Pour remaining sauce over the top, and cover dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 1 hour at 350º. Remove from oven and let sit (covered) 15 minutes before serving. Garnish with extra Parmesan.
In North Carolina, spring brings the scent of fresh-cut grass and memories of helping Dad mow the lawn.
Nostalgic burger joints are like time machines, delivering something extra special that keeps us coming back.
This tiny city block in downtown Greensboro once had a gigantic reputation. Not so much for its charbroiled beef patties — though they, too, were plentiful — but for its colorful characters and their wild shenanigans.
In the 1950s, as Americans hit freshly paved roads in shiny new cars during the postwar boom, a new kind of restaurant took shape: the drive-in. From those first thin patties to the elaborate gourmet hamburgers of today, North Carolina has spent the past 80 years making burger history.
