Weeknight Bolognese

This is another Ina Garten recipe that I found in her The Barefoot Contessa – How Easy Is That? cookbook. The bolognese sauce sounded amazing to eat and fun to make so I decided to pair it with the Balsamic Roasted Beet Salad for dinner. I absolutely loved the flavor of this sauce and so did my family–it was rich, flavorful, and so tasty! I decided to pair this weeknight bolognese sauce with some cheese ravioli (my son’s favorite) and a big loaf of bread, for an extra hearty meal.

How to Make Weeknight Bolognese

Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium Dutch oven. Add the shallot and cook, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes. Add the ground sirloin and cook, crumbling up the meat with the spoon, for 5-7 minutes, or until the meat has lost its pink color. Add the minced garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes then cook, stirring often, for 1 minute. Spoon out any excess grease from the Dutch oven if needed.

Pour 1 cup of red wine into the Dutch oven making sure to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Add the tomatoes and tomato paste then season with a bit of sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 10-15 minutes.

Cook your desired pasta in salted water per instructions on the box.

While the pasta is cooking, finish the sauce. Add the nutmeg, basil, cream, and remaining 1/4 cup of red wine to the sauce and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened. Taste and re-season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, if needed. Serve tossed with your pasta and topped with lots of freshly grated parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

Weeknight Bolognese

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Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Course: Main

Cuisine: Italian

Servings: 8

Author: Pam / For the Love of Cooking - Original recipe by Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients

• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 small shallot diced
• 1 lb lean ground sirloin
• 4 cloves of garlic minced
• 1 tbsp oregano
• ¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1¼ cups dry red wine divided
• 1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• Sea salt and freshly cracked pepper to taste
• Pasta of choice cooked per instructions (I used cheese ravioli)
• ¼ tsp fresh nutmeg grated
• ¼ cup fresh basil chopped & more for serving
• ¼ cup heavy cream
• Parmesan cheese freshly grated

Instructions

• Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium Dutch oven.
• Add the shallot and cook, stirring often, for 2-3 minutes.
• Add the ground sirloin and cook, crumbling up the meat with the spoon, for 5-7 minutes, or until the meat has lost its pink color.
• Add the minced garlic, oregano, and red pepper flakes then cook, stirring often, for 1 minute.
• Spoon out any excess grease from the Dutch oven if needed.
• Pour 1 cup of red wine into the Dutch oven making sure to scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan.
• Add the tomatoes and tomato paste then season with a bit of sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste.
• Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
• Cook your desired pasta in salted water per instructions on the box.
• While the pasta is cooking, finish the sauce. Add the nutmeg, basil, cream, and remaining 1/4 cup of red wine to the sauce and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened.
• Taste and re-season with sea salt and freshly cracked pepper, to taste, if needed.
• Serve tossed with the cooked pasta and topped with lots of freshly grated parmesan cheese and fresh basil. Enjoy!

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