Bolognese

I think mince dishes are always better after 24 or 48 hours of making.  The sauce soaks into the meat, the flavours intermingle and develop.  For that reason I'm making the lasagne bolognese today to put it all together tomorrow.

I can tell you how I make mine, bolognese that is, but the thing about that is that almost EVERYONE has their own version, their own preferences.  And I doubt that many of them resemble what an italian from Bologna would describe.  Then again, what's the betting that the same holds true for the Bologneese.  Yes, that's definitely a made up word but it's cool huh?

So, my version is very tomato biased, with sweetness and lots of red wine.  I do cheat - I use a jar of Ragu per every 500g of lean minced beef.  It speeds up the process significantly and provides a good foundation.  As with most things I do, I adulterate it to my own tastes with lots of wine, mushrooms, onions, extra chopped tomatoes, a sprinkling of sugar and black pepper.

Tomorrow will be the day to put the lasagne together to give time for the flavours to soak into the pasta sheets, and to make the tiramisu.  Both will be easier to cut and serve for making ahead, which makes them ideal dinner party foods.