Festoni del Ghiottone

Gourmet Lasagne

This dish reminds me of those apparently never-ending Christmas meals where succulent course follows succulent course. As it requires quite a lot of preparation, I suggest that you only make it on really special occasions. Because festoni is so rich and substantial, you may wish to make it a main course, accompanied only by salad.

Serves 8 as a main course

Meatballs
300g (10 1/2 oz) minced beef
1 garlic clove finely chopped
1 tbsp chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
30g (a good 1 oz) Parmesan, freshly grated
2 medium eggs, beaten
40g (1 1/2 oz) fresh breadcrumbs, soaked in a little milk and then squeezed dry
Olive oil for frying
Salt and pepper to taste

The word 'festoni' is the equivalent of the English word 'festoon', and that is what the pasta looks like. It is similar to pappardelle, a ribbon of up to 2.5cm (1 inch) wide, which is frilled along one or both sides.

For the meatballs, make a paste by mixing the minced beef, the garlic, parsley, Parmesan, eggs and soaked breadcrumbs together. When you have thoroughly stirred this mixture and added some salt and pepper, start shaping it into little walnut-sized meatballs. Fry these in some oil until they are golden.

Prepare the sauce by frying the onion in the oil. When it is only half cooked, add the chopped chicken livers. After about three minutes' frying, add the tomatoes and continue to simmer for about half an hour over a low heat. Towards the end of this time, add the fresh basil leaves and some salt and pepper.

Preheat the oven to 200 C/ 400 F/ Gas 6.

Cook the pasta for 5-7 minutes in boiling salted water or until it is very al dente, drain, then add some of the tomato sauce so that it is all coated. Take a deep baking tin and start layering the festoni by spreading some tomato sauce over the bottom. On this arrange some of the cooked pasta. Next on top of the pasta place some of the sliced salami, some meatballs and some slices of fontina or taleggio. Cover these with another three or four tablespoons of sauce and a sprinkling of Parmesan. Repeat this procedure until you have used up all the ingredients other than the sauce and Parmesan. When you have reached the final layer of cheese, pour on the well-beaten eggs, which will bind the pasta together. Over this pour the last of the sauce and the remaining Parmesan.

Put the tin into the preheated oven for 25 minutes. When ready, golden and sizzling, leave the dish for five minutes before dividing into portions with a knife, and serving hot.

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