“Sindi was loved. She had a complete collection of every issue of TASTE and loved food and cooking but it wasn’t a skill that came easy to her”

Over the years Sindi would occasionally tweet or Instagram a pic of the cover of my cookbook long after everyone else had forgotten I had ever written one. She referred to me as “uMama ka Sebastiaan”, which made my heart burst. She was generous in her praise and honest in her criticism. She was loved. Sindi also had a complete collection of every issue of TASTE of Bolognese, a smoosh of crème fraîche, torn basil and loads of Parmesan.

My family loved it, which made me enormously happy, but it also saddened me when I thought that there were so many things that Sindi, uMama ka Nandi, uMama ka Manie, would no longer be able to do for her children. Then something told me to go back in my emails and there

stirring, until the bacon is golden and the fat nicely rendered, about 7–10 minutes. Remove from the pan and set aside.

2 Add another 2 T olive oil to the pan and fry the mince until nicely browned, then remove from the pan and set aside – also 7–10 minutes. 3 Add the remaining olive oil to the pan and fry the onions and garlic until translucent and golden. Add the celery and carrots and cook over a medium heat until softened. 4 Return the bacon and mince to the pan and add the tomatoes, half the basil and the water.

Season to taste. Mix well and simmer for 1 hour, stirring it to prevent it from burning. 5 Stir through 200 g grated cheese and the remaining basil, keeping a few leaves aside to garnish. 6 Serve the pasta in bowls with generous amounts of Bolognese, a large dollop of crème fraîche, a sprinkling of the remaining cheese and a few torn basil leaves.

Cook’s note: This ALWAYS tastes better the next day. A traditional lasagne will serve 10 but making it my way and using more pasta will stretch it much further. You can, of course, prepare this in the traditional way. Follow the pasta package instructions and make three alternating layers of the Bolognese, pasta sheets and crème fraîche in two large, deep dishes. Finish with a layer of crème fraîche, sprinkle over the remaining Parmesan and basil. Cover with foil and pop in the oven at 180°C for 1 hour. Uncover, then give it an additional 5–10 minutes so that the top is golden. HEALTH-CONSCIOUS

WINE: Woolworths Terra del Capo Sangiovese