It is no secret that we love pasta around here. Baked pastas, pasta salads, funky pastas, traditional pastas. Pasta that will change your life. For all the pasta I’ve made in my day, though, I had never tried my hand at a real bolognese, and so I decided to try. It was wonderful.
bolognese.
via tasty kitchen.
3 tbsp olive oil
1 cup white onion, finely minced
1 cup carrots, finely minced
1 cup celery, finely minced
2 cloves of garlic, finely minced
½ tsp red pepper flakes
1 pound ground beef
½ pounds ground veal
1 tbsp fresh thyme
2 whole bay leaves
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 cup milk or cream
1 cup dry red wine
1 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
kosher salt and black pepper
1 pound small pasta
Grated parmesan cheese
Heat olive oil in a large heavy pot and add onions, carrots, celery, and garlic. Saute until translucent. Add chili flakes and sauté for an additional minute. Add beef, veal, and ½ teaspoon of kosher salt. Use a wooden spoon to crumble the meat and break into small pieces. Once the meat is no longer pink, add thyme, bay leaves and tomato paste and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.
Add the milk and bring to a simmer. Simmer until all the milk has evaporated and only clear juices remain, about 10 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a simmer. Continue simmering until all the wine has evaporated, about 10 minutes.
Add tomatoes with their juices and bring to a boil, then place the heat at the lowest setting. Continue on this very low simmer for 2 – 2 ½ hours, stirring every 20 minutes until you get a rich, thick meaty sauce. Check for seasonings and add salt and pepper accordingly.
Boil pasta according to directions and drain. Just before serving, toss the noodles in the pot with the sauce and serve with parmesan.
While this requires a couple good hours on the stove, it’s not a challenging sauce to make. It’s perfect for a Saturday or Sunday afternoon when you plan to be around the house. Comfort food at its best!
In a perfect world, we could eat pasta for every meal,
jcristg
The Dough Will Rise Again 