This lasagne uses three different types of meat, which might seem like a lot, but each one adds something different. The beef mince gives it body, the Italian sausages bring extra flavour and spices, and the pancetta adds a bit of saltiness and helps everything cook together nicely.
The meat sauce takes about forty minutes to put together properly. You start by cooking the onions slowly with garlic and rosemary until they’re soft and sweet. Then you add the pancetta and let it get crispy before adding the beef and sausage meat. The red wine goes in with the tomatoes and stock, and the whole thing simmers away until it’s thick and rich.
The cheese sauce is made with butter, flour, milk and double cream. You cook the butter and flour together first until they turn golden, which gives the sauce a deeper flavour than if you just mixed them cold. Adding the milk slowly and whisking constantly stops it going lumpy. The nutmeg and parmesan go in at the end.
Building the lasagne is straightforward enough. You alternate layers of meat sauce, pasta sheets, and cheese sauce, with some fresh basil leaves scattered through. The mozzarella and extra parmesan go on top for the last forty-five minutes in the oven.
It serves twelve people, so it’s good for when you’ve got a crowd to feed. The whole thing takes about two hours from start to finish, but most of that is cooking time rather than actual work. Once it’s done, you need to let it rest for twenty minutes before cutting into it, which gives the layers time to set properly.
The smell while it’s cooking is brilliant, and it’s the sort of thing that gets everyone gathering in the kitchen.
Celebration Lasagne
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil
- 1 Red Onion (large)
- 4 Cloves Garlic
- 2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
- 150g Pancetta (cubed)
- 500g Mince Beef
- 400g Italian Sausages
- 1 tbsp Oregano
- 250ml Red Wine
- 1 Beef Stock Pot
- 2 tbsp Tomato Puree
- 2 Bay Leaves
- 2 Tins Chopped Tomatoes
- 500ml Water
- Salt and Pepper
- 75g Butter
- 4 tbsp Plain Flour
- 400ml Milk
- 400ml Double Cream
- 2 tbsp Freshly Grated Nutmeg
- 40g Freshly Grated Parmesan
- 18-20 Dried Lasagne Sheets
- 2 Balls Mozzarella
- 40g Freshly Grated Parmesan
- Bunch of Fresh Basil
Directions
- Preheat the oven to 170°C (150°C Fan)
- Heat the oil in a large pan or casserole dish. Add the onion, rosemary and garlic and cook for 5 minutes, then turn the heat down to low and cook for 15 minutes, stirring every now and again until the onions are beginning to soften.
- Add the pancetta, turn up the heat again and cook until just turning crispy, then add the minced beef and give everything a good stir.
- Squeeze the meat out of the sausage skins and into the pan. Break up the meat with a fork & add the oregano. Give everything another good stir to mix together well.
- Add in the red wine, tinned tomatoes, water, tomato puree, beef stock pot and bay leaf. Stir everything together and bring to a bubble, then pop on the lid then turn the heat down again to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes. Stir from time to time.
- At this stage you can get on with the cheese sauce. Put the butter into a pan over a medium heat and once melted, add the flour. Cook, while stirring, for 5 minutes until the butter turns a deep gold brown. Whisk the milk and cream together in a measuring jug.
- Turn the heat to low and add in a few tablespoons of the milk mixture and whisk. It will form a thick paste. Keep adding the milk 2-3 tablespoons at a time whisking as you go. Only add more milk once fully absorbed. Once all of the milk and cream has been added you will have a smooth, thick, sauce. Simmer gently, while slowly whisking for about 15 minutes. Grate in the nutmeg and parmesan then taste for seasoning.
- By now the meat sauce should be cooked. Give the sauce a good stir and check for seasoning.
- Now its time to assemble the lasagne. Grease a large dish with butter and add a thin layer of meat sauce, followed by some basil leaves. Then a layer of pasta sheets, making sure they over lap each other, followed by a layer of cheese sauce. Repeat these layers another two times.
- To finish, tear up the mozzarella balls and sprinkle over the top of the final layer of cheese sauce. Grate over the parmesan, pour over some olive oil and bake in the oven for 45 minutes.
- Take the lasagne out of the oven and let rest for 20 minutes.
