Ingredients

The following ingredients have 6 Servings
  • 2 slices good quality white or peasant bread
  • crust trimmed a bit
  • Milk
  • to soak
  • 1 pound ground chuck
  • Salt and pepper
  • ¼ cup flat-leaf parsley
  • finely chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • pasted or grated
  • 1 large egg
  • beaten
  • Extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO)
  • for drizzling
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 large cloves garlic
  • thinly sliced
  • 1 small onion
  • finely chopped or grated
  • 2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 cup beef stock
  • 2 cups passata or tomato purée
  • Two 28-ounce cans San Marzano tomatoes
  • A few leaves basil
  • torn
  • Sea salt
  • to taste
  • 2 cups fresh ricotta cheese
  • 2 large eggs
  • beaten
  • A few grates nutmeg
  • 2 cups freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
  • loosely packed
  • divided
  • ⅓ pound prosciutto cotto (2 ⅛- to ¼-inch thick slices)
  • finely diced
  • 1 pound Fior di Latte or fresh mozzarella
  • diced or grated

Instruction

  • Preheat oven to 400˚F
  • For the meatballs, soak bread in milk to soften
  • Squeeze out all excess moisture and crumble between your fingers as you add to mixing bowl containing the meat
  • Season with salt and pepper, and add parsley, garlic, egg and a fat drizzle of EVOO
  • Use a small scoop or wet hands with warm water and roll golf ball-sized meatballs
  • Arrange on a parchment-lined or nonstick baking sheet and roast to light brown and almost cooked through 15-18 minutes
  • Meanwhile, make the sauce: Heat olive oil, 2 turns of the pan, over medium heat
  • Melt butter into oil and stir in garlic and onions, thyme, salt and pepper, and partially cover
  • Let sweat 5 minutes, stirring frequently, to soften
  • Add stock and stir in pure and tomatoes, breaking up tomatoes with potato masher
  • Stir in torn basil; simmer 45 minutes adding the meatballs after 15 minutes
  • Mix together the ricotta with eggs, nutmeg and half of the Parm cheese
  • Finely chop the ham
  • Reduce oven temp to 375˚F
  • Build lasagna in 9x13 pan: first some sauce then 3 ribbons of lasagna noodles, half the ricotta, ⅓ of the mozzarella, half the ham, another layer of pasta, a layer of half the meatballs and some of the sauce, then sprinkle with some Parm
  • Repeat the layers again and top with last of the red sauce and the remaining mozzarella and Parm cheese
  • Bake lasagna covered with foil on baking sheet for 45-50 minutes
  • Remove foil and bake to brown, 10-15 minutes more
  • Let stand at room temp 15-20 minutes before cutting