Vincisgrassi Maceratesi al Ragù Bianco

Make the pasta. Mound the flour on a work surface, break the eggs into the centre, and add the Marsala or Vin Santo, which gives the dough its characteristic amber tint and a faint sweetness that balances the richness of the ragù. Work to a smooth, firm dough. Wrap and rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes — the gluten must relax fully so the sheets roll without springing back; the dough is ready when it is supple and springs back slowly under a finger.

Prepare the sweetbreads. Place them in cold salted water and bring to a simmer rather than dropping them straight into boiling water, so they stiffen gradually and the membrane lifts cleanly without tearing the flesh. Blanch for 3 minutes, drain, cool under cold running water, and strip away all membrane. Press flat between two weighted boards for 20 minutes, then slice thin — pressing drives out the residual liquid and compacts the sweetbreads so each slice holds its shape without tearing.

Cook the ragù. Melt the butter in a wide pan over medium heat, add the prosciutto, and sweat until the fat softens, so its salt and depth season the cooking fat before the offal goes in. Add the chicken livers and cook no more than 90 seconds per side until coloured outside but still faintly rosy within, then add the sliced sweetbreads, turn once, and deglaze immediately with the Marsala, allowing it to reduce by half. Remove from heat — this is where the dish lives or dies, because the offal must still be slightly underdone at this point: it finishes cooking in the oven, and overcooked liver turns grainy and bitter while overcooked sweetbreads turn rubbery, and neither fault can be corrected once baked.

Make the enriched béchamel. Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan, whisk in the flour, and cook the roux over low heat for 2 minutes without colouring, so the raw floury taste cooks out before the milk goes in. Add the warm milk gradually, whisking constantly, then stir over medium heat until the sauce thickens; add the cream and Parmigiano and season assertively with salt. The béchamel is ready when it coats the back of a spoon heavily and a drawn finger leaves a clean, stable line — it must be richer and thicker than an ordinary béchamel so it does not run between the layers during baking.

Roll the rested pasta to approximately 2 mm on a lightly floured surface and cut into sheets sized to fit the baking dish. Cook the sheets in well-salted boiling water for 1–2 minutes — they finish in the oven and must go in underdone, or the baked result will be soft rather than toothsome — lift out and lay flat on clean cloths. Brush each sheet on one side with clarified butter while still warm, so the butter penetrates and the sheets do not stick together as they cool.

Assemble the vincisgrassi. Heat the oven to 180 °C, then spread a thin layer of béchamel over the base of a buttered baking dish so the bottom pasta sheet has something to grip and does not dry out. Lay down the first pasta sheet buttered side up, spread with béchamel, distribute one quarter of the ragù evenly, and shave black truffle generously over the surface before repeating to build 4–5 substantial layers. Finish with a pasta sheet, the remaining béchamel, the grated Parmigiano, and a final layer of shaved truffle — the layers must be generous, 4–5 deep rather than 8 tissue-thin ones, so each portion carries a full measure of ragù and truffle in every forkful.

Bake at 180 °C for 30–35 minutes until the surface is golden and bubbling at the edges and a skewer inserted to the centre meets no resistance from the pasta. Remove from the oven and rest for 20 minutes before cutting, so the béchamel firms and the layers set enough to hold a clean edge when portioned — cut too soon and they collapse into each other on the plate.