Lasagna Vincisgrassi
- 4 tablespoons JOSEPH Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 1 white onion, finely chopped
- 1 medium carrot and 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
- 100 g piece pancetta, finely chopped
- 200 g pork neck, finely chopped
- 200 g gravy beef, finely chopped
- 200 g chicken livers, finely chopped
- 200 g chicken hearts, finely chopped
- 700 g tomato passata
- 200 ml beef broth
- 200 ml Primo Estate La Biondina
- 100 g butter (plus more for greasing the lasagne dish)
- 35 g plain flour (1/4 cup)
- 1 x quarter teaspoon of nutmeg
- 1 x 600ml milk
- 1 x cup grated Parmesan cheese (use more if required)
- 2 x 375g packs of fresh lasagne sheets
To make the lasagne, you first need to make the meat sauce, then the bechamel sauce and are then ready to assemble for baking.
Ragu Meat sauce
Heat 2 tablespoons JOSEPH Extra Virgin Olive Oil and 50g of butter in a large pot, add celery, carrot and onion. Cook for 5 minutes but do not brown.
Add pancetta and cook for a further 3 minutes.
Add the pork neck, gravy beef and chicken hearts and cook gently for 10 minutes, browning the meats.
Add the white wine and cook for 3 minutes.
Add the beef broth and passata.
Bring to the boil then reduce heat and simmer for 1.5 hours.
Add the chicken livers and cook for a further 10 minutes. Turn off the heat.
Check seasoning then add salt and pepper as desired.
Bechamel Sauce
Once the meat sauce is complete, make the bechamel sauce.
Melt 50g butter in a medium saucepan.
Add flour, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste. Stir with a wooden spoon for three minutes to cook off the flour (mixture should bubble and become thick).
Gradually add the milk and stir continuously until sauce boils and becomes thick (a whisk can help if you have problems with it seizing).
Now you are ready to assemble the lasagna.
Assembling the Lasagna
Ingredients
- 2 x 375g fresh lasagne sheets
- 1 x cup grated parmesan
- Butter to grease
- Meat sauce
- Bechamel sauce
A tip from Joe’s mother, Santina, is to butter the dish then first place a layer of lasagne sheets across the bottom of the dish that extend up and over the sides so that when you assemble the last layer these sheets are folded over and form a pie of sorts! This makes it very easy to cut and serve.
Add a layer of meat sauce, not too thick, followed by a drizzle of bechamel and a sprinkling of parmesan.
Repeat until the last layer, which will be a thicker layer of only the meat sauce.
Now, for the last layer, fold over the edges of the lasagne sheets and add a layer of meat sauce topped with a heavy sprinkling of parmesan.
Cover tightly with foil and place in a preheated oven at 180*, and cook for 40 minutes. Remove the foil and cook for a further 15 minutes.
Serve with a crunchy lettuce salad and a bottle of the Shale Stone Shiraz – the richness of the ragu does wonders for the wine!
