Nonna's Lasagna

Preparation

1) To make the meatballs, start by soaking the breadcrumbs in the milk and set aside. In a large bowl, add the beef, egg, breadcrumb mixture, parm, garlic, parsley, salt and pepper, mix well to combine then form into tiny meatballs, about the size of 1/2 of a teaspoon and set aside.

2) In the base of a Dutch oven, cook the meatballs in the olive oil over medium heat until they develop some color (watch video to see how easily I do this) remove to a plate and in the same drippings, add the onion with a pinch of salt and saute until translucent.

3) Once the onions are ready, add the wine, cook for a minute, then add the tomato puree (add about half a cup of water in each can to clean it out and add it to the pot) then add the basil along with the cooked meatballs, reduce the heat to low, partially cover and simmer for a few hours stirring occasionally.

4) Boil the lasagna noodles in lots of salted boiling water until pliable (don't overcook) then drain and rinse in cold water to stop the cooking process, toss with a tablespoon of olive oil and set aside.

5) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish and set aside as well.

6) Mix the ricotta in a bowl with the egg, salt and pepper and set that aside as well.

7) Once everything is prepped, start by layering the lasagna. Add a bit of sauce to the bottom of the baking dish, line the base with the lasagna noodles, followed by 1/4 of the ricotta, some of the sauce and meatballs (about a cup or so) then add some mozz and a grating of parm and continue to do this until you have 4 layers of pasta and ricotta and the 4th layer is the sauce, mozz and parm.

8) Bake for 45 minutes then let cool for an hour before serving.

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