Sparks from the Kitchen

If there’s one sauce that I choose more than any other to have with pasta it’s  bolognese.   During my visits to Italy I enjoyed a nice bowl of pappardelle alla  bolognese more times than I can count. The best, in my opinion, were all in Tuscany but the best of those were where they also include wild boar sausage in the sauce.  Just delicious.  Not to mention the many local Italian restaurants near me that each make their own fabulous version of the sauce.

I had a recipe that I had been making for a while but the last few times I made it I was underwhelmed.  Really disappointed even. To the point where I just threw it out.  I couldn’t tell if I had over cooked it or if the tomatoes I used had a different taste or what but I knew I didn’t like it.  So there has been a pretty long drought for home made bolognese in my house. 

And then Carrie from www.carriessweetlife.com posted this beauty oh her blog. Pancetta. Red Wine (chianti-always chianti for me). Parmesan Rind. I new that I would love it. And I did. It’s my new bolognese.  So a huge GRAZIE to you Carrie. My freezer is now full of yummy bolongese. I adapted it a bit and it’s just as delicious as it sounds.

My New Bolognese

Ingredients:

• Olive oil
• 5 ozs pancetta, diced
• 2 lbs ground sirloin
• 1 lb sweet Italian sausage, casings removed
• 2 large yellow onions, chopped small
• 1 large carrott, chopped small
• 8 cloves garlic, minced
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
• 1 small can tomato paste (or half of one tube)
• 1 cup dry red wine (chianti)
• 1 cup beef stock
• 2 28oz cans Muir Glen Organic crushed tomatoes w/basil
• 2 14.5 oz cans Muir Glen Organic diced tomatoes
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 tbsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
• Rind from Parmesano Reggiano wedge/wheel

Instructions:

1. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a large stock pot. Add the pancetta and cook until it’s cooked crispy.  Add the sirloin and sausage and cook, using a wooden spoon to break it apart, until browned.  Drain the excess fat from the pan.  Add the onions, carrot, garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are softened.
2. Stir in the tomato paste until it’s evenly distributed throughout the meat and vegetables. Add the wine and cook, scraping the pan to get the bits off of the bottom, until the wine evaporates. Add the stock, tomatoes, baty leaves, oregano, pepper flakes and Parmesan rind. Bring to a bubble then reduce to medium low to just simmer gently.
3. Cover and let it simmer for 5 hours. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed. Remove the bay leaves and rind before serving or freezing.
4. To serve place cooked pasta and desired amount of sauce in a pan over medium heat with some of the pasta water. Stir to coat the pasta with the sauce and serve.
5. To freeze let the sauce cool completely then spoon it into quart-sized ziplock bags.  Give the bags a few shakes or gentle taps on the counter to get the air to the top. Leaving just a small portion of the zipper open lay the bag flat and gently push the air out.  Zip the remainder of the way and lay flat in the freezer. Don’t forget to label the bags!!

So this is how much sauce this recipe makes.  Those are quart-sized ziplock bags and smaller 1-3 cup containers. 

I have a funny feeling that the different brands of tomatoes that I used before this recipe were the problem.  After cooking for a while they tasted bitter and made the sauce yucky.  I recalled seeing that America’s Test Kitchen had done one of their comparisons of canned tomatoes recently so I went to their website and they recommended the Muir Glen Organic higher than any other and gave them a stellar review.  They were right on! The tomatoes were perfect and tasted just like they should. I hightly recommend using them.