Bolognese

I'm going to let you in on a little secret.  Only one of us indulged in the delicious meal that is pictured above.  Oh, we all ATE the Bolognese but there was only one us who had this artfully arranged, picture worthy bowl placed in front of them.  The rest of us enjoyed the same scrumptious meal on our everyday, scratched, chipped and well used dinner plates.  I didn't take the time to wipe the edges of our bowls, perfectly position the forks in the pasta or garnish our dishes with the freshest and greenest parsley.  Who has time for all that?

Even though all of the meals on the table tasted the same, as you can imagine, having only one picture worthy plate can cause some tension among dinner eaters.  When my kids were younger, they used to argue over who would get the "picture plate."  I may or may not have even used the prized picture plate as a bargaining tool to get my kids to do their chores.  Maybe it wasn't my proudest parenting moment but with the added motivation of a beautiful dinner plate, my kids got their chores finished in record time.  Despite the fact that all the meals tasted the same, the recipient of the prized plate always gave a little victory celebration at the table - proof that we eat with our eyes.  

Now that I've ruined all your expectations that these skillfully prepared and styled meals adorn our dinner table nightly, I feel like I can move on.  Just trying to keep it real.  I only have the time to make one meal look pretty enough to photograph - the rest of us eat a much less visually appealing version of the same meal.  

Bolognese
1 pound 93% lean ground beef
2 Tablespoons water
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
4 cups beef broth
6 ounces pancetta
1 onion, chopped
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon oil
3 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 pound tagliatelle
​

Toss beef with water, baking soda and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.  

Bring broth to a boil in large pot. Reduce to 2 cups.  ​Pulse pancetta in food processor.

Add onion, carrot and celery and pulse until paste consistency.  

Heat butter and oil in skillet.  Add vegetable mixture and 1/4 t. pepper.  Cook 8 minutes until liquid evaporates. 

Spread into bottom of pan and cook until dark browned bits form on bottom of pan.  (7-12 minutes)  

Stir in tomato paste and cook 1-2 minutes longer. 

Add beef and cook until no longer pink. 

Stir in wine, scraping browned bits from bottom.  Bring to a simmer.  

Cook 5 minutes or until wine evaporates and sauce is thickened. 

Stir in broth and parmesan.  Cover and simmer 30 minutes.  (Sauce will be thin.)

​Rinse broth pot.  Fill with water and cook pasta until al dente.  Drain.  Reserve 1/4 c. pasta water.  

Add pasta to pot with sauce.  Toss to combine. 

I served my pasta with a fresh crescent roll and a salad.  Easy Peasy.

I'll never be a food stylist because I always shoot real food instead of camera worthy substitutes.  I feel like I need to attach a disclaimer to my pictures that says "all of the food in this photos was actually consumed."  

Ciao!

Click here for a printable version of this recipe