Heat a large saucepan over a high heat, add the oil, onion, garlic and pancetta and cook until onions are soft.
Add the beef, pork, lamb and sausages, season with salt and pepper and brown the meats. Add red wine, cooking and stirring occasionally until all the wine has evaporated then add tomato paste and bay leaves and cook for 2 minutes, stirring all the time.
Add the passata, turn to a low heat and simmer, slowly cooking the ragu until the meat is soft and tender. This will take a minimum of 2-3 hours. Add basil and cook for a further 20 minutes and season to taste.
For the lasagna
100g butter
600g fresh pasta sheets, homemade or from your favourite food store
750g Granarolo bechamel sauce (available from Nosh)
1kg of ragu
250g mozzarella, roughly sliced
150g Ghiotti pecorino romano
20 basil leaves
Preheat oven to 180C.
Grease a large baking dish (30cm by 40cm) with butter and set aside.
Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil, and blanch the pasta sheets one at a time and cook until al dente, then refresh by placing in a bowl of iced water. When all the pasta sheets are cooked and chilled, strain the water off and pat dry with kitchen towels.
Spread a large spoon of the ragu on the baking dish and place enough pasta sheets to cover the dish. Spread another layer of ragu and ¼ of the béchamel , ¼ of mozzarella , ¼ of pecorino romano and 5 basil leaves. Repeat the process 3 more times or until all the pasta is finished, then add some ragu on the top and bake at 180c for 30-40 minutes until golden crisp on top.
Rest the lasagna for 10 minutes and then serve. Garnish with grated pecorino and fresh basil leaves.
