Method: This is a fresh pasta dish using boiled noodles, roasted lamb or seared tofu chunks, and a slow-simmered red sauce.

You will need:

• A chitarra
• Rolling pin
• Large stock pot
• 12-inch skillet
• Pastry mat or cutting board
• Spray bottle of water
• Pastry/basting brush
• 3 cups flour
• 4 eggs
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 whole onion, sliced
• 1 pound quartered Roma tomatoes
• 1 pound lamb chunks
• 1 cup broda (broth) (recipe in Step 4)
• 3-4 sprigs of fresh rosemary
• 1/4 pound grated pecorino cheese

For broda:

• 6 cups water
• 1 pound each beef, pork, and lamb bones
• 1 whole onion, diced
• 3 carrots, finely diced
• 2 or 3 ribs diced celery
• 2 generous pinches of sea salt
• 1 tablespoon white pepper
• Cheesecloth

Step 1:

Make maccherone alla chitarra. A chitarra has one or two layers of closely spaced wires, making it look like the neck of a guitar. Pour 3 cups of flour in a mound on your cutting board. Poke a hole in the mound; add 4 eggs and a pinch of sea salt. Work the eggs into the flour until you have sticky dough.

Step 2:

Sprinkle more flour on the board and roll the dough to 1/4-inch thickness, the width of your chitarra. Cut the thin dough by laying it on your chitarra, using your rolling pin to force it through the wires. Allow your maccherone to dry slightly before tossing it into boiling water to cook.

Step 3:

Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet. Slice onions and sweat them in the olive oil until they become clear and barely start to brown. Toss 1 pound of fresh quartered tomatoes in the pan and stir. Add one cup broda, which is a broth made from beef, lamb and pork bones. In a separate pan, brown 1 pound lamb chunks in olive oil, then place in a deep baking dish to roast at 300 degrees for 25 minutes. Turn lamb every ten minutes and baste with olive oil. Spritz with water to prevent drying out the meat. Add roast lamb chunks to your sauce after it has simmered for at least 20 minutes on low heat. If using the vegetarian version of this dish, substitute extra firm tofu cut in 1-inch chunks. Brown tofu chunks in olive oil with a splash of soy sauce and several sprigs of rosemary.

Step 4:
To make broda, boil beef bones, pork bones, and lamb bones in 6 cups of water until any meat that may still be on them falls off. Add one whole diced onion, 3 finely diced carrots, 2 or 3 ribs of diced celery and a generous double pinch of sea salt. Sprinkle in 1 tablespoon of white pepper. Strain the broda through a piece of cheesecloth and store in your freezer until needed. To make vegetarian broda, eliminate the meat bones, triple the vegetables and add 2 pounds mashed pinto bean paste or 2 pounds mashed tofu to the mixture. Use a food processor, blender or food mill to puree all the solids and don’t strain the broda.

Step 5:

Serve a large handful of maccherone alla chitarra twisted into a bird’s nest shape. Cover with a large dipper of sauce and roast lamb chunks. Garnish with sprigs of fresh rosemary. Sprinkle dish with grated pecorino cheese. Serve hot.