Pasta Bolognaise

What is my family’s favorite pasta dinner? Pasta Bolognaise!!! We used to go to Martini’s a local restaurant, best Bolognaise ever, but at $15 a plate I decided to try it at home.  The result is the following recipe and I would definitely put mine up against theirs any day!  And it is less than $20 for a complete meal for all four of us.

Pasta Bolognaise

 

INGREDIENTS:

·         1      (1 lb) rigatoni pasta

·         1       sweet Italian sausage link, casing removed

·         ½      teaspoon fennel seeds

·         3 ½   cups “Magic” Meat Sauce

·         4       ounces of goat cheese, divided

·         Parsley if desired

INSTRUCTIONS:

·         In a large pasta pot, add water and salt if desired, bring to a boil.  Cook pasta according to package directions.

·         Meanwhile, in a large deep skillet or Dutch oven add enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, remove casing from sausage, and crumble into pan.  Cook sausage over medium heat stirring and using the back of a spoon to break up the sausage into very small pieces.  Cook until all water has evaporated, sausage is no longer pink, and it is starting to brown. 

·         Add “Magic” meat sauce to pan, and bring to a simmer.  Remove from heat and add 2-ounces of goat cheese, stirring well to combine.

·         Lightly toss pasta with a little of the sauce.

·         Divide pasta between 6 plates, top with sauce, garnish with remaining goat cheese and parsley if desired.

HINTS:

·         If you are not a fan of goat cheese you can substitute a ¼ cup of half and half in the third step and garnish with parmesan or Romano cheese.

 

SEE ALSO:

• Inside-Out Pizza Rolls
• Beer Enchiladas with Jalapeno Slaw
• Three Cheese Manicotti

 

 

“Magic” Meat Sauce

I like to cook meals that do double duty…from this one sauce (which is awesome as is), I am going to post 4 additional recipes.  It is one of my favorite time and money saving recipes.  When I make the basic sauce I make multiple batches at once, it freezes beautifully, taste even better the second day, and makes it super easy to get dinner on the table multiple other nights all from one afternoon of cooking.

The original Meat Sauce recipe, Inside-Out Pizza Rolls, Beer Enchiladas with Jalapeno Slaw, & Three Cheese Manicotti are all from Rachel Rays magazine, the Bolognaise Sauce is my personal adaptation.

“Magic” Meat Sauce

Makes: 7 cups  Prep: 15 min.  Cook : 2 ½ hours

 

 INGREDIENTS:

·         ¼   cup extra-virgin olive oil

·         ¼   cup chopped pancetta

·         1    onion, finely chopped

·         1    carrot, finely chopped

·         2    celery stalks, finely chopped

·         1    clove garlic, finely chopped

·         2    pounds lean ground beef

·         ½   cup dry red wine

·         One (28oz) can tomato puree

·         Salt and pepper

INSTRUCTIONS:

·         In a large, heavy pot, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat.  Add the pancetta and cook until the fat is rendered, about 5 minutes.  Increase the heat to medium, add the onion, carrot and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 8 minutes.  Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.  Increase heat to medium-high, add the beef and cook, breaking it up, until no longer pink, about 8 minutes.  Stir in the wine and cook until the piqued is cooked off, about 5 minutes.

·         Stir in the tomato puree and 1 cup water; and bring to a simmer.  Partially cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally for the last 30 minutes, until thickened, about 2 hours.  Season with salt and pepper.

SEE ALSO:

·         Bolognaise Sauce

·         Inside-Out Pizza Rolls

·         Beer Enchiladas with Jalapeno Slaw

·         Three Cheese Manicotti

HINTS:

·         Use a chopper or food processor to finely chop the onion, celery, carrot, and garlic.  They need to be very fine so the incorporate into the sauce.

·         Cook multiple batches (i.e. double, triple, or quadruple the recipe), cool and either store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 6 months.

·         Be careful during the last 30 minutes of cooking, the thicker the sauce gets the often you will need to stir it.