Ingredients

Ragu

  • Onion x2
  • Garlic x4 cloves
  • Carrot  x2 large
  • Cherry Tomato x 200g
  • Olive Oil x 1 cup
  • 1/3 Bottle Red Wine
  • Oregano  – several sprigs
  • Rosemary – several sprigs
  • 1 Tin polpa tomatoes or passata
  • Basil – handful -Parsley  – handful
  • Salt tbsp
  • Pepper tbsp

Pasta

  • 3eggs
  • Double O Flour x 2 cup
  • Chopped parsley ½ cup\

Bechamel

  • Butter x 100g
  • Flour x 150 g/ 1 cup
  • Milk x 400 mls/ 2 pints
  • Pinch Sea Salt
  • Pinch Pepper
  • Pecorino Cheese x 1 cup grated

Method Ragu

  1. Slice onion, crush garlic, slice carrot and chop cherry tomatoes.
  2. Add all into a pan with a big glug of olive oil and stew down on the stove.
  3. 3 swirls of the pan with red wine (1/3 bottle), 1 tin of polpa tomatoes.

Method Hare Butchery

  1. Remove the head  with a cleaver and the 4 bottom joints of the legs
  2. Begin the skinning process by degloving the pelt starting from the hind quarters working back towards the neck.
  3. Butcher off the back legs at the hip joint, Then front legs at the shoulder joint, finally removing the saddle. Cut the saddle into 3 with a cleaver.

Method Cooking Hare

  1. Brown off legs and saddle in a hot frying pan with oil over the stove. (More colour adds depth to the flavour of the sauce).
  2. Once browned the meat is added to the Ragu and placed into a pressure cooker.
  3. Using a splash more red wine to deglaze the pan of the hare juices and add to the pressure cooker.
  4. The pressure cooker is set @ 400f° for an hour.

Method Making Pasta

  1. Start by making a mound of double o flour, hollowing out the middle to form a bowl.
  2. Crack 3 eggs into the hollow and whisk the eggs into the flour.
  3. Then begin kneading the dough until you achieve the correct texture (working it for a strong 5 minutes)
  4. Add chopped parsley to give the pasta some colour (optional).
  5. IMPORTANT allow the pasta time to rest before running it through the pasta machine.
  6. Once rested run the past through the machine, taking it down a notch or two each time. This stretches it out width and thinness creating sheets.

Method Cooking Hare (post pressure cooker).

  1. Let the steam out from the pressure cooker.
  2. Stain out the Ragu and pick out the solids.
  3. Put the strained Ragu back into a pan over a stove and reduce the Raghu down by a third, concentrating the flavours making it dark and oily

Method Making Bechamel

  1. Melt butter into a pan adding flour and milk whisked over the stove until you begin to get the sauce thickening.
  2. Then add seasoning, pinch of salt and pepper.
  3. Grating a good block of pecorino cheese into the sauce.
  4. Taste to make sure its nice and cheesy before leaving to cool and thicken.

Method Lasagne Construction

  1. Whilst the Ragu is simmering on the stove take the hare meat of the bone, working it through your fingers to shed before adding back to the Ragu.
  2. Finely chopping basil and parsley to add into the Ragu.
  3. Final seasoning of salt and pepper and final taste.
  4. On an oven proof dish layer sheets of pasta to cover the dish forming the base.
  5. Then build up the layers by delicately adding Ragu, then bechamel and additional grated pecorino cheese.
  6. Repeat this process of layers 4 times (pasta, Ragu, bechamel and grated cheese).
    • IMPORTANT make sure to leave plenty of bechamel for topping/ crust.
  7. Final Layer of bechamel coats the entire dish making a complete layer.
  8. Add extra grated pecorino as a final touch before putting the lasagne into the oven @ 200c ° for 20 mins
  9. Once out the oven leave the lasagne to stand and set for 15 minutes
    • IMPORTANT this cooling time reduces the viscosity of the lasagne allowing you to cut it into pieces to serve.
  10. Once served onto a plate, add the finishing touch of grated pecorino cheese and enjoy a truly wholesome cheesy homely meal.