A good bowl of pasta has to be one of the most comforting dishes I could ask for. Now what type of bowl of pasta you ask? It might depend on my mood, but let me tell you, a hearty, homemade bolognese is always a close winner. Bolognese is a meat based sauce of the Italian cuisine. It is a typical sauce to the city of Bologna, hence where it gets its name. This slow cooked sauce may have variations depending on the chef, family, or anyone who has put a twist on their own version. My version of bolognese is pretty simple for the most part. Ground veal and pork are my favorite, however if I have ground beef at the house, then I’ll just use what I have. I don’t use milk in my recipe, but I do love to add a little chicken base and a rind of parmesan cheese. Both of these additions add flavor and creaminess of their own. Since parmesan and chicken base already have a salt content, I don’t use as much salt to season. I let them do the seasoning. I do add salt to minced veggies while they saute to bring out their flavors while they “sweat,” but once I add the chicken base and rind, I don’t season my sauce with anymore salt while it cooks. Towards the very end, I will give it a taste, then if I feel it needs to be seasoned, I’ll sprinkle some salt and pepper to taste. 

Ingredients:

• 1lb ground pork

• 1lb ground veal

• 2 carrots, minced in food processor

• 2 stalks of celery, minced in food processor

• 1 onion, minced in food processor

• 2 cloves of garlic

• ¼ cup tomato paste

• 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar

• 1 cup red wine

• 3 (28 oz) cans of San Marzano whole tomatoes, pureed in blender

• Olive oil

• Fresh parsley, a few stems/leaves (small handful)

• Fresh basil, a few stems/leaves (small handful)

• Chili pepper flakes, desired amount

• 1 tsp. Better Than Bouillon chicken base

• 1 parmesan cheese rind

• Salt

• Pepper 

Instructions:

1. In a large sauce pot, brown the ground veal and pork. Drain the fat then set aside. 

2. Use a food processor or Vitamix to mince the veggies. Set aside.

3. Using the large sauce pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add the minced carrots, celery, onion, garlic, chili flakes. Season with a sprinkle of salt, stir and saute for about 3 minutes, until soft and fragrant.

4. Add tomato paste and balsamic to the sauce pot, stir to combine and saute another 2-3 minutes. In the meantime, make sure tomatoes are pureed and ready to go.

5. Add wine, chicken base and tomatoes to the sauce pot (when I pour my tomatoes into the pot, I add some water to either the canister, jar, or can that is came from to slush around to get all the residue and pour the tomatoey water into the pot as well). Add parsley and basil. No need to remove basil and parsley from their stems, just throw in the pot and you can remove at the end if needed. Stir to combine, raise heat to bring to a boil.

6. Once it’s brought to a boil, add the meat, stir to combine. Make sure it comes back to a boil then lower heat to a simmer for 2-3 hours. Leave the lid off and remember to stir often. While stirring, always make sure to get the very bottom of the pan. The cheese rind will most likely disintegrate by the end, but if it didn’t you can remove before serving, or cut into small chewy, delicious pieces of cheese! If there’s any big pieces of stem from the basil or parsley, you can remove those as well, however you don’t have to at all (just depends on your personal preference).

7. Season to taste, add sprinkles of salt and pepper as necessary.

8. Add to your favorite pasta. This type of sauce goes well with long, flat pastas like pappardelle, tagliatelle or linguine. If you like short pasta, rigatoni or orecchiette are great choices for this sauce.

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