Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ½ pound ground pork
• ½ pound ground beef, as lean as possible
• ½ pound mild/sweet Italian sausage
• 1-½ cups diced yellow onions
• 3 ounces prosciutto, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup water
• 1 pound canned whole tomatoes, preferably plum
• or
• 3-½ pounds ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 12 ounces tomato paste
• 1 cup red wine
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1-2 sprigs fresh basil, optional
• salt and ground black pepper to taste
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
• 2 tablespoons chopped basil
• 1 lb. ricotta cheese (part-skim is fine)
• 1 lb. mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced or shredded
• ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
• lasagne noodles

Method

Put the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the pork, beef, and sausage and brown well. Drain as much fat as possible, then add the diced onions, chopped prosciutto, and minced garlic. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring periodically, until the onions are softened--about 10 minutes.

Stir in 1 cup water and continue cooking until the water is almost evaporated and has made a little bit of sauce around the onions, about 20-25 minutes.

Add the canned tomatoes, breaking up the whole tomatoes with your fingers as you add them to the pan. Add the red wine, tomato paste, dried oregano, and basil (optional). Bring the tomato sauce to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, stirring often, for anywhere from 1-3 hours. Season with salt and ground black pepper to taste.

Reserve a handful of the mozzarella cheese. Mix the egg, chopped herbs, ricotta cheese, and remaining mozzarella cheese together in a bowl.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. If you wish to cook the lasagne noodles before assembling the casserole, do so (this is not necessary if you are using fresh pasta). In a lasagne pan (13x9x3), spread a small amount of the tomato sauce on the bottom (just enough to cover), then repeat the following layers three times:

--1/3 of the noodles
--1/3 of the cheese mixture
--1/3 of the tomato sauce

The top layer should now be the tomato sauce. Over that, sprinkle the handful of reserved mozzarella cheese and the Parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 for 40-45 minutes until well browned and bubbly. Let stand about 15 minutes before serving.

Notes

This is a combination of a recipe from someone I used to work with and the "Classic Italian American Lasagne" recipe from pp. 314-315 in the Joy of Cooking, published 1997 (really the "Classic Italian American Tomato Sauce I" recipe on p. 306).

To get really fancy (although probably only you, the cook, will know about it), add fresh basil leaves to the homemade lasagne noodles when rolling out the dough.

Categories

Italian, beef, main dishes, one-dish meals, pasta, pork, prepare ahead, signature