Lasagna Bolognese with Fontina Béchamel

Ingredients

For the bolognese:

1 large onion, roughly chopped
1 large carrot, roughly chopped
2 sticks of celery, roughly chopped
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
1lb ground beef chuck
1lb ground pork
4 oz. pancetta or bacon, finely chopped
1 14.5-oz. can crushed tomatoes
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 cup red wine
1 cup whole milk
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the pasta (if you're making from scratch)

3 cups all-purpose flour plus more
4 large eggs, room temperature
½ teaspoon kosher salt

For the fontina béchamel:

1 stick (8 tbsp) unsalted butter
½ cup all-purpose flour
4 cups whole milk
2 cups Fontina, grated (about 6oz)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 clove minced garlic
Freshly grated nutmeg, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper

To assemble:

2 cups parmesan, grated

Special equipment:

A pasta maker/roller (see link in text above)

Instructions

To make the bolognese:

Combine the vegetables and garlic in a processor and mix until they’re finely chopped (just a few pulses should do it).
Heat a large Dutch oven or saucepan on the stovetop, add the oil, and once hot, add the vegetables and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook until soft and starting to brown a bit. (10-15 minutes).
Add the pork and beef (and pancetta or bacon, if using) and cook until brown. Scrape the bottom of the pan with a spoon as you stir if it's getting dark. (15 mins). Stir in the tomato paste and cook for another few minutes. Add the liquid ingredients - red wine first, allowing to reduce for a few minutes, then add the tomatoes, milk and stock. Add the bay leaves.
Simmer the sauce, uncovered, for 2 - 3 hours, stirring occasionally. You may need to add more chicken stock (or water) if the sauce starts to get too dry. When it’s done, fish out the bay leaves and leave to cool for 20 minutes (refrigerate when cool if assembling lasagna the next day).

For the lasagna noodles (if you’re making it yourself).

Combine the flour, eggs and salt in a food processor. (You can do this by hand if you’re feeling enthusiastic!). Mix until it starts to come together (test it with your hands). If it doesn’t stick, add a little water (just a couple of teaspoons at a time). Remove from the processor and work it into a ball on a floured surface. Let rest for an hour under a bowl or in cling wrap at room temperature.
Once it’s rested, separate into several equal pieces (about ½ cup each) and run them through your pasta roller. Start with the widest setting, running through at least a couple of times, before moving to the next level.
When starting out, it’s better to work the dough through a few times on the widest setting (0 or 1). Run it through once, then refold the dough, turn it 90 degrees, and run it through again. Repeat a few times, and then just run it through at this setting without folding. You should start to feel the dough turning “plastic” and smooth. Once you get to this stage, move the rollers together one level and run it through again. You can add a little flour if the strip is sticking to the roller too much.
Repeat a couple of times at each level before moving down to the next. Don’t be tempted to skip levels! We stopped at level 6 (out of 9) but your preference, expertise, and machine may vary.
Lay the rolled noodle onto your floured surface and cut to fit your lasagna dish (probably around 10 inches). You can be very approximate with noodle lengths, since you can easily cut pieces to fit into a layer (nobody will know!)
Stack the noodles between floured wax paper when you’ve made more than you can fit on your countertop.

To make the béchamel sauce:

On medium heat, melt butter in a medium saucepan. Add the flour, stir and cook for a minute. Add ¼ cup of the milk in a slow drizzle, whisking constantly until smooth. Add another ¼ cup and whisk until smooth. Then add the rest and whisk again.
Add the salt, garlic, nutmeg and few grinds of black pepper, bring the mixture to a lower simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes.
Turn off heat and stir in fontina, a handful at a time, until melted (if it doesn't fully melt, turn on low heat and stir until just melted and smooth). Taste and adjust seasonings if needed.

https://www.nerdswithknives.com/lasagna-bolognese/