Growing up I never really enjoyed meat sauces; ground beef in general was not my favorite meal starter. My, how the times have changed. This my be my favorite pasta sauce and that’s saying something because my mom’s marinara sauce is out of this world good. Did I mention left over sauce makes a great lasagna?! Coming soon…Traditional Bolognese sauce requires the use of milk. In most Italian red sauces, you would never add milk, but because this sauce reduces for over an hour the milk is a key ingredient to doing it like the Italians do. The lactic acid in the milk breaks down the meat and makes it moist and tender.

Mise en Place for Spaghetti Bolognese (everything in place): 1lb ground pork, 1lb ground beef, 5oz butter, 1 carrot peeled and minced, 1 celery stalk peeled and minced, 1 small onion peeled and minced, 2 cups of whole milk, 2 cups of dry white wine, 2x 28oz cans of tomatoes diced fine juices reserved, 1 tsp thyme, 1 sprig of basil for garnish, 1 lb spaghetti, grated parmesan cheese.  Start by melting butter in a LARGE sauce pan, I mean large. None of my sauce pans are big enough so I used my 6 quart La Creuset and it almost overflowed. I’d go with 8qt if you have it and if not get a large pot, that works too. Sweat the mire poix (onions, carrots, celery) with a tablespoon of salt until soft. I always taste the carrot because it takes longest. I never cooked with carrots before culinary school, now I can’t get enough of them. The carrots give the sauce sweetness and color. You don’t want to brown the mire poix, it should be translucent and tender.Once the mire poix is translucent and soft, add the ground beef and ground pork with another tablespoon of salt. Cook crumbling the meat until it looses its raw pink color but has not browned. About 3 minutes.  Add 2 cups of milk and bring to a simmer (small bubbles). Continue to simmer until the milk evaporates and only the clear fat remains, 10-15 minutes.Add wine and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer until the wine evaporates, 10-15 minutes.Add tomatoes and their juices and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium low, until all the liquid has evaporated, about one hour. You can skim the surface to remove the excess fat. Add the thyme and cook another 10 minutes. Just before serving, add basil. Taste and adjust seasoning. Cook pasta according to instructions and serve with sauce, basil and parmesan cheese (A LOT of parmesan cheese if your me).Buon Appetito!

Spaghetti Bolognese

Serving Size (4-6 adults)

1lb ground pork

1lb ground beef

5oz butter

1 carrot peeled and minced

1 celery stalk peeled and minced

1 small onion peeled and minced

2 cups of whole milk

2 cups of dry white wine

2x 28oz cans of tomatoes diced fine juices reserved

1 tsp thyme

1 sprig of basil for garnish

1 lb spaghetti

grated parmesan cheese.

Start by melting butter in a LARGE sauce pan, I mean large. None of my sauce pans are big enough so I used my 6 quart La Creuset and it almost overflowed. I’d go with 8qt if you have it and if not get a large pot, that works too. Sweat the mire poix (onions, carrots, celery) with a tablespoon of salt until soft. I always taste the carrot because it takes longest. You don’t want to brown the mire poix, it should be translucent and tender. Once the mire poix is translucent and soft, add the ground beef and ground pork with another tablespoon of salt. Cook crumbling the meat until it looses its raw pink color but has not browned. About 3 minutes. Add 2 cups of milk and bring to a simmer (small bubbles). Continue to simmer until the milk evaporates and only the clear fat remains, 10-15 minutes. Add wine and bring to a simmer. Continue to simmer until the wine evaporates, 10-15 minutes. Add tomatoes and their juices and bring to a simmer. Reduce heat to medium low, until all the liquid has evaporated, about one hour. You can skim the surface to remove the excess fat. Add the thyme and cook another 10 minutes. Just before serving, add basil. Taste and adjust seasoning. Cook pasta according to instructions and serve with sauce, basil and parmesan cheese.