Pasta Bolognese Time: 60 minutes
This is a true Northern Italian meat sauce based on one found in the Time Life "Foods of the World, Italian,' book. It's not the tomato-y sauce that we have come to expect as the standard. It's full-flavored and fantastic, filled with minced vegetables and meat; but it's not thick. Try it, you'll like it!
Linguini, fettuccini, or similar, fresh pasta, for 2 persons 8 oz (250 gr)
1 1/2 - 2 cups Ragù Bolognese
2 tbs cream or creme fraiche or milk, optional
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
Cook pasta according to package directions. Combine cream with sauce if using. Toss the pasta with the sauce and serve, Parmesan on the side.
Ragù Bolognese Time: 60 minutes
For a pasta sauce it's traditional to add cream or milk - I just add a bit of Greek yogurt or crème fraiche. For other uses (such as risotto) the dairy is left out. This will make enough for the Bolognese Risotto and/or Bolognese Lasagne with Spinach as well as the Pasta Bolognese
4 oz Prosciutto (125 gr)
4 oz ground pork (125 gr)
16 oz ground beef (500gr)
1 large onion, about 1 cup chopped
1 medium carrot, about 1/3 cup chopped
2 stalks celery, about 2/3 cup chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 tbs olive oil
1/2 cup white wine
2 cups beef stock
1 can diced or chopped tomatoes
4 tbs tomato paste or 1 small can
1 tsp basil
1 tsp oregano
a pinch of nutmeg
Roughly chop the carrots, celery, garlic and onion. Then, very, very finely chop the vegetables. Do it in a food processor, or blender if you can, but stop before you make paste. If doing it by hand, make a mound on the cutting board, half at a time. With a large chef knife, mince them using a rocking motion. Heat 1 tbs oil in nonstick skillet. Add the vegetables and sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes. Remove and put into a large sauce pan. Finely chop/slice the ham. Put the ham, pork and beef into the same skillet. Sauté until cooked through and brown, breaking it up as small as you can. Pour in the wine, turn the heat up and boil until most of the liquid has cooked off, stirring to get up any browned bits in the skillet. Add the meat and remaining liquid to the vegetables. Stir in the stock, tomatoes and tomato paste. Add the herbs and nutmeg. Bring to a boil, stir well, cover partially, reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes, stirring occasionally. Refrigerate unused sauce for later or freeze for up to 4 months.
Cooking for Two? Or more?
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