not your usual (nor quick and easy) lasagna bolognese

but oh so worth the time for a sunday dinner or something special. i'm generally not a big fan of lasagna BUT some close friends of ours in germany made this for us several years ago and i've never looked back. john and i have made this several times over the last few years and are never disappointed.

p.s. - i am not a huge fan of pancetta, so often leave it out but some of you out there might really enjoy it.

Lasagna Bolognese (Slow and Delicious)

Ingredients:

Bolognese Sauce:

2 oz. diced pancetta, finely chopped

1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped

1 stalk celery, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

4 Tbsp unsalted butter

11 oz ground beef

4 oz ground pork (I've used ground turkey on occasion and have been happy with it)

4 oz ground italian sausage (I've used veal in place of the sausage or the beef)

1 freshly ground clove

dash of cinnamon

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

2 lb peeled and chopped tomatoes (or 1 28-oz can whole peeled tomatoes, packed in water)

1 cup whole milk

1/2 tsp sea salt

Bechamel Sauce:

2 cups whole milk

1/4 cup unsalted butter

1/4 cup cake flour (use all-purpose if you don't have cake flour on hand - no need to make a special purchase)

freshly grated nutmeg to taste

Lasagna:

About 16 sheets of an Italian brand of lasagna noodles (enough to make four layers in a 13x9 inch backing pan)

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

The Process:

The Bolognese:

(Can be made a day or two ahead of time - keep in the refrigerator in an air tight container)

1. Make the soffritto - combine pancetta, onion, celery and carrots in a saute pan with butter and cook over medium heat until onion turns pale.

2. Add the beef, sausage and pork to the soffritt0 and increase the heat to high; cook until browned. Sprinkle with spices: clove, cinnamon and pepper.

3. Stir in the tomatoes, bring to a simmer and reduce heat to medium. Cook over medium heat for 15 minutes. If using whole canned tomatoes, break them up as you add them to the sauce.

4. Add milk and season with sea salt. Then turn down heat and simmer for 2 and 1/2 hours. Stir at least every 20 minutes. (If possible, definitely give the sauce the full 2 and 1/2 hours - the sauce changes quite a bit as it simmers.)

The Bechamel:

5. Heat the milk until almost boiling in a heavy bottomed sauce pan. In a separate pan melt the butter with the flour over low heat. Stir rapidly with a spoon. Cook this for 1 minute and then remove from the heat.

6. Slowly add half the hot milk to your butter and flour mixture. During this process stir constantly.

7. Return the milk, butter, flour mixture to low heat until the sauce begins to thicken. Add the remaining milk slowly while stirring - working it into the thickened sauce. Continue to stir until it comes to a boil

8. Season with some salt and grated nutmeg. Continue stirring until the right consistency has developed (until it coats a spoon thickly). Remove from heat.

The Lasagna:

9. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Cook the lasagna noodles according to the instructions (I've used the non-boil kind and it worked out fine). Drain boiled lasagna noodles and rinse in cold water. Lay the individual noodles on kitchen towels, not touching, so they do not stick together.

10. Spread a little olive oil around the inside of the baking pan. Only use pyrex or stainless steel. Aluminum pans don't mix well with the sauce and will case it to taste very acidic. Put a layer of lasagna down first. Layer on a third of the bolognese sauce, then a third of the bechamel sauce. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese. Repeat two more times. Top with a final layer of noodles and sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese.

11. Put lasagna on the middle rack of the pre-heated oven. Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the top begins to get lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool 5-10 minutes before serving.

Mmmmmm, mmmm good.