Three Layer Cake

Pasticcio di Gianna

Gianna's "Pasticcio" is more commonly known as lasagne the name which refers to the pasta used in this dish most Anglosaxons refer to as "lasagna".  (Pasticcio in several Italian regions also refers to a pasta dish which is actually enclosed with a pastry or dough crust).  Gianna is my culinary adviser.  She is, hands down, the best cook I've ever met, and if you're ever in Padova, skip the bigoli al ragù at Osteria dei Fabbri (which are second only to Gianna's) and ring Gianna's doorbell instead.  

I usually use my ragù for this, but Gianna doesn't believe in long-cooking meat sauces because it makes them heavier, so here is her recipe for ragù and the final dish, her pasticcio.  In Rome, lasagne, or baked pasta dishes are typically served for Easter lunch. 

Ragù
 

• 500kg ground meat:  mixed beef, pork, chicken
• 1 carrot
• 1 medium sized onion
• 1 rib of celery
• 1 clove of garlic
• sage
• rosemary
• cloves
• cinnamon
• salt and pepper to taste
• olive oil, extra virgin
• white wine, one-third cup
• 800g canned tomatoes or tomato sauce
  

In a food processor, chop carrot, onion, garlic, rosemary, and sage.   In a frying pan without sauteeing, add the ground meat, broken up as much as possible, the carrot and spice mixture, salt and pepper to taste, cloves, cinnamon, and a tablespoon of olive oil.  After it it has cooked a bit and mixed well, add one third cup of white wine.  Let it evaporate, then add the tomatoes.  After about an hour, when the bubbles are mostly of the oil which has risen to the top, remove from heat.  Heat oven to 350F/180C.

Bechamel
 

• 50g butter
• 50g flour
• 500mL milk

I  think the real way to do this is to melt the butter, and sprinkle over the flour and mix, then add the milk.  I can't do it without making lumps, so a Bolognese housewife showed me her trick. She slowly whisks the flour in to the milk and butter already in the pot and heats.  You should whisk until the sauce starts to thicken, but not too dense because the heat of the oven will thicken it more.  This is just personal taste though.  You want your lasagne to be oozy, not too compact.

Preparing the Pasticcio

The amount of fresh pasta you will need will depend on the size of your pan, but for a 9x13 baking dish of 3 pasta layers, a 250g package of fresh pasta should do, but get two to be safe.   Because it is fresh, it will not need pre-cooking.   Also, 100g grated parmesan for the layers.

Put a tablespoon or so of the bechamel and one of the meat sauce on the bottom of the pan, then a layer of pasta.  Add the meat sauce, bechamel, and sprinkle some parmesan.  Repeat the layers this way as many as you want, as many as your ingredients will allow, and finish with a layer of bechamel and a healthy sprinkle of parmesan.  You can also include meat sauce on this layer if you like.

Put in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until the top layer is golden brown.