A truly Italian "Ragu Bolognese"

Ragu Bolgonese is considered the Holy Gail of Italian cooking.
Made with a lot of love and then simmered for several hours, this meal  will keep many mouths
extremely happy!

This recipe came from our Italian babysitter who was from Modena in Emilia Romagna.
Her grandmother and mother always cook the tomato part to the sauce separately (sieving it as well !) and then finished it with the mince for the long simmer in some milk.
The Italians use meat sparingly and dress their pasta with "ragu". As the sauce has been simmered for
several hours it is much richer and so less is needed.
Bellissima!

Soffrito
1 large onion
2 large cloves of garlic
2 bay leaves
1 tin of  Italian  tomatoes (if possible from Campania - they are the natually sweetest - Lidl Deluxe)
2 cups of chicken stock

Chop onion and saute on medium heat for 10 minutes.
Add chopped garlic and saute for a further 2 -3 minutes.
Add tinned tomatoes and turn up heat to high, stirring  well with garlic and onions.
After several minutes add the chicken stock and bay leaves bring to boil and then simmer
the "soffrito" for  30 minutes.

Mince

500g  Round steak mince or 250/pork mince and 250/lamb's mince
4 teaspoons dried oregano.
200 mil of white wine
300 ml milk

Saute mince in a pan on a high heat until well cooked, add white wine, reduce and then added the oregano.
leave to the side.

When the "soffrito" has simmered for 30 minutes, take off the heat
remove the bay leaves and then blend into a thick sauce.

Add the mince to the blended  "soffrito"and stir well together and add the milk
Bring to the boil and then simmer  slowly for 2 hours, stirring every 20 mins or so.

Serve with any shape of pasta and grated Grana Padona cheese or make a very dense
Lasagne with lots of layers.

Wine Pairing
Aldi has a great "Gavi di Gavi" from Piedmont made from the Cortese grape.