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Vincisgrassi




Source of Recipe


the web


Recipe Introduction


This is one of the Marche region's signature dishes, a rich pasta sauce that is mentioned in Antonio Nebbia's Il Cuoco Maceratese, though he calls it princisgras. He was writing in 1784, before the widespread acceptance of tomatoes, and indeed omits them, calling for truffles and prosciutto instead. More modern recipes do call for tomatoes, and also include chicken giblets, which give the dish its characteristic flavor.


List of Ingredients




For the sauce:
1 1/3 pounds 600 g ground beef (fairly lean)
12 ounces (300 g) chicken giblets (also unborn eggs, testicles, and whatnot if the butcher has them)
2 onions
2 carrots
2 ribs celery
Abundant marjoram
2-3 cloves (the spice, not garlic)
8 ounces (200 g) lard (you'll want the cured kind available in a delicatessen, not rendered lard)
1/2 cup (100 g) unsalted butter
2 pounds (800 g) beef bones
12 ounces (300 g) pork bones
8 ounces (200 g) lamb bones
6 1/2 pounds (3 k) blanched, peeled, seeded tomatoes (or use canned tomatoes)
5 cups grated Parmigiano (this should weigh out to 250 g, about 10 ounces)
3 mozzarellas, diced (about 3/4 pound, or 300 g)
Salt & pepper
Freshly grated nutmeg
For the pasta:
5 cups (500 g) flour
6 eggs
For the béchamel sauce:
Scant cup (90 g) flour
1/3 cup (70 g) butter
3 cups (750 ml) whole milk


Recipe



Begin by making the meat sauce: Finely slice the giblets and sauté them in the butter with the ground beef, cloves, marjoram, an onion, a carrot, and a stick of celery, leaving the vegetables whole so you can remove them when the sauce is done. In the meantime sauté the bones in the lard with the other onion, stick of celery and carrot, again whole.

When the meats have browned add the tomatoes, half to each pot. Simmer both sauces gently, stirring every now and then; the sauce with the ground beef will take about an hour to cook, while the sauce with the bones will take about two. When they are done, remove and discard the vegetables and the bones, then combine the two.

While the sauces are cooking, make the pasta (see instructions if need be), roll it out dime-thin, and cut it into 4 by 6-inch strips (these are the vincisgrassi; if you are pressed for time you could use fresh pasta sheets and cut hem to shape).

Prepare the béchamel sauce (see instructions if need be).

Cook the sheets of pasta a few at a time abundant lightly salted water until they're just shy of being al dente (this should take 2-4 minutes), fish them out of the pot with a slotted strainer, run them under cold water, and pat them dry.

Take an elegant oven-proof dish large enough to hold everything, and lay down a first layer of pasta, followed by sauce, diced mozzarella, grated cheese, and a couple of gratings of nutmeg. Put down another layer of pasta, kinking the pieces slightly to help them absorb sauce, then more meat sauce, closing with a layer of pasta. Gently pour the béchamel sauce over it all, put the Vincigrassi in a 400 F (200 C) oven, and bake them for an hour, covering the pan with aluminum foil if they look like they're over browning.