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Three Meat Bolognese Lasagna

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In this Homemade Three Meat Bolognese Lasagna, a rich and flavorful bolognese sauce including ground beef, pork and veal along with vegetables, herbs, wine and cream, slowly simmered over a couple of hours. This robust bolognese sauce is the backbone to this lasagna. Spoonfuls are layered between noodles, cheese and a creamy mascarpone and ricotta mixture.
Course baked pasta
Cuisine Italian
Keyword beef, bolognese, Christmas, lasagna, pork, veal
Prep Time 2 hours 45 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Additional Time 35 minutes
Total Time 4 hours
Servings 12 servings
Calories 624
Author Laurie McNamara

Ingredients

FOR THE THREE MEAT BOLOGNESE Sauce:

  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 3 medium carrots roughly chopped or (or 1 cup diced very small)
  • 3 ribs celery from celery heart, roughly chopped (or 1 cup diced very small)
  • 1 medium onion roughly chopped (or 1 cup diced very small)
  • kosher salt
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • 2 teaspoons fresh thyme
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 1/2 pound ground beef
  • 1/2 pound ground pork
  • 1/2 pound ground veal
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup dry red wine like merlot or pinot noir
  • 28 ounces canned crushed San Marzano tomatoes (or regular crushed tomatoes)
  • 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

FOR THE RICOTTA MASCARPONE FILLING:

  • 16 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese
  • 8 ounces mascarpone cheese
  • 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/2 cup shredded Mozzarella cheese not pre-shredded
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

FOR THE LASAGNA:

  • 16 oven-ready lasagna noodle sheets
  • cups shredded mozzarella not pre-shredded*

Instructions

MAKE THE THREE MEAT BOLOGNESE:

  • In your food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse the carrots, celery and onion until finely chopped.
  • In a dutch oven, add olive oil, [finely chopped] carrots, celery, onions and a 1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt. Heat on medium. Stir, cover and cook (stirring occasionally) until tender, about 5 to 8 minutes.
  • Add in garlic, thyme and bay leaves and cook for 2 minutes.
  • Next add in the beef, pork and veal. Use a wooden spoon to break up the meat into crumbles -- be careful not to crush the bay leaves. Cook until no longer pink. If you notice that the meat mixture is swimming in fat, use a spoon to remove no more than half. Please don't fear the fat! Fat = flavor and you don't want to lose too much flavor or the sauce will be dull. I personally removed zero fat and this yielded a glorious robust bolognese sauce. (no regrets!)
  • Next add in the tomato paste and cook 2 to 3 minutes before pouring in the heavy cream. Increase the heat to medium/ medium-high and simmer until the heavy cream evaporates and is only a little creamy, about 10 to 15 minutes. Pour in the wine and continue to simmer, about 10-15 minutes until most of the wine evaporates.
  • Lastly, add in crushed tomatoes. Stir, cover and increase the heat to high and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low and simmer, stirring every 20-25 minutes for 2 hours.
  • Allow the sauce to cool before assembling the lasagna. I prefer to make the bolognese a day in advance so the flavors can develop even more overnight. Remember to remove the bay leaves before assembling.

MAKE THE RICOTTA FILLING:

  • In a medium bowl stir together the ricotta, mascarpone, grated fresh Parmesan, mozzarella and eggs. Keep mixture refrigerated until ready to use.

ASSEMBLE THE LASAGNA:

  • Preheat your oven to 375℉ (or 190℃).
  • Layer 1: Measure 1¼ cups of sauce and spread it out even onto the bottom of your pan. Top with 4 lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the [chilled] ricotta mixture, then top the ricotta with 1 cup of the sauce and 3/4 to 1 cup of the shredded mozzarella.
  • Layer 2: Top the mozzarella with 4 more lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta mixture, 1 cup of sauce and then 3/4 to 1 cup of the mozzarella.
  • Layer 3: Place 4 more noodles, the remaining ricotta, and 1 cup of sauce [no cheese].
  • Lastly layer 4: Place the last 4 noodles on top of the sauce, spoon the remaining sauce over top and sprinkle with the 2 cups Mozzarella cheese.
  • Bake (uncovered) on the middle rack of your preheated oven for 20 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway and bake for an additional 20 to 30 minutes, or until the cheese is golden brown and the the whole pan is bubbly. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 624kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 43g | Saturated Fat: 23g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 12g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 179mg | Sodium: 437mg | Potassium: 447mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 3g | Vitamin A: 3705IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 382mg | Iron: 1mg