Baked Ziti With Lamb And Sausage Ragù

Total Time: 3 hrs 20 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 3 hrs

Ingredients

• Servings: 6
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta, chopped
• 2 lbs lamb shoulder, cut into 1 and 1/4-inch cubes
• 1 lb hot sausage, casings removed
• 2 cups chopped onions
• 3/4 cup chopped carrot
• 3/4 cup chopped celery
• 6 large fresh thyme sprigs
• 6 large garlic cloves, chopped
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
• 2 cups dry red wine
• 1 (28 ounce) can plum tomatoes in juice, tomatoes chopped, juice reserved
• 1 1/4 lbs ziti pasta
• 2 cups packed coarsely grated whole-milk mozzarella cheese (about 8 ounces)
• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiano cheese

Recipe

• 1 heat olive oil in heavy large pot over medium-high heat.
• 2 add pancetta and saute until brown and crisp.
• 3 using slotted spoon, transfer pancetta to bowl.
• 4 sprinkle lamb with salt and pepper.
• 5 add half of lamb to drippings in pot; saute until brown, about 7 minutes.
• 6 transfer to bowl with pancetta.
• 7 repeat with remaining lamb.
• 8 add sausage to same pot.
• 9 saute until no longer pink, breaking up with back of fork, about 5 minutes.
• 10 add onions, carrots, celery, thyme, garlic, bay leaves, and crushed red pepper.
• 11 reduce heat to medium-low; saute until vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes.
• 12 add wine and bring to boil, scraping up browned bits.
• 13 add pancetta and lamb with any accumulated juices; boil 2 minutes.
• 14 add tomatoes with juice.
• 15 cover and cook until lamb is very tender, adjusting heat as needed to maintain gentle simmer and stirring occasionally, about 2 hours.
• 16 uncover pot; tilt to 1 side and spoon off fat from surface of ragù.
• 17 gently press lamb pieces with back of fork to break up meat coarsely.
• 18 season ragù to taste with salt and pepper. (can be made 2 days ahead. cool slightly. refrigerate uncovered until cold, then cover and keep refrigerated. rewarm over low heat before continuing.)
• 19 preheat oven to 400°f
• 20 butter 15 x 10 x 2-inch glass baking dish or other 4-quart baking dish.
• 21 cook pasta in large pot of boiling salted water until 'al dente', stirring occasionally.
• 22 drain pasta; mix into ragù.
• 23 season mixture to taste with salt and pepper; transfer to prepared dish.
• 24 sprinkle both cheeses over.
• 25 bake until heated through and golden, about 20 minutes. makes 8 servings.
• 26 that's it!