Dinner Time!

Today I'm going to introduce you to one of my favorite dinner dishes- Pasta Bolognese. This is a great addition to any cookbook and is simple to make but yet tastes so complex. It is literally the favorite meal of the family I work for and we eat it probably every other week. The leftovers (if there are any) taste just as great over the next few days- and the sauce freezes super well. Great to make a double or triple batch and then save for a busy day. And did I mention the kids love it? Well they do- Little J can eat 3 or 4 bowls of it, and Big J doesn't complain when he sees it on the table- which is enough for me.

Ingredients:

2 (28 oz) Cans of crushed tomatoes

3 Tablespoons of Olive Oil

6 oz pancetta or 6 slices of bacon, finely chopped (I always use bacon)

1/4 pound ground pork (not lean)

1/4 pound ground beef chuck (not lean)

1/4 pound ground veal  

          *side note on meat- I substitute 1/2 pd of ground pork and 1/2 of pd of ground lamb. Their dad          doesn't eat beef - I have made it with the beef and veal before and it was just as delicious.

1 small onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

1 carrot or baby carrots, finely chopped (about 1 cup)

1 cup dry red wine

1 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon of kosher salt

1 teaspoon of black pepper

1 pound of small pasta - we usually use penne or fusilli

And feel free to garnish with some parmigiano-reggiano cheese

Prep:

In a large heavy pot over moderate heat, heat oil until hot but not smoking. Add the pancetta(bacon) and saute until golden brown, 5-6 minutes. Add beef, pork and veal (or whatever variation you are using) and saute, breaking up meat with back of a spoon until browned, 7-8 minutes. Add the onion and carrots and saute until the vegetables are tender, 5-6 minutes.

Stir in red wine and simmer, scraping up browned bits stuck to the bottom of pan, until liquid is reduced by half, about 5 mins. Stir in the tomatoes, cream, salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to moderately low and simmer, uncovered, stirring occaisionally, until sauce is thickened and brick-red in color, about 30 mins.

Meanwhile in a large pot of salted water, cook pasta until almost tender. Drain well and toss with sauce. 

Serve and Enjoy! 

If you plan on freezing the sauce- then package and put into a freezer safe container before adding pasta- then you want to use it, defrost it, make some pasta and add it to the sauce. 

 (Yum!)

*missed taking a few pictures of steps because I was distracted by the internet- whoops!*

I hope everyone enjoys the recipe as much as we do!