Day 2 NaBloPoMo: the perfect bolognese sauce

Big day today: Rob and I left the house! Alone! Without the baby!

I wish I could say that we snuck away to a bar or the casino or someplace awesome. But we went car shopping. Or, more like car looking. Which I know I should be more excited about since the car is for me, but I'd much prefer to be sitting at a bar. (Cars are just cars, right?)

So today was the first time the "Grammies" came over to babysit for Max! (Everyone survived, poopy diaper and all)

As a thank you, I made Sunday dinner: my bolognese sauce.

If you read this blog you know how much I love to cook. I don't usually share recipes though; not because I don't want to, but because it's frustrating to people because I don't measure anything. So my recipes aren't…exact.

But cooking isn't exact, which is why I love it. And which is why I'm so horrible at baking. When I tell Mr. KK I'm going to bake something, a look of terror crosses his face and he instantly has something to check on/do/mow/build in the yard.

So I stick to cooking.

My bolognese sauce goes something like this:

Ingredients:

1 onion
2 carrots
2 ribs of celery
1 pound meatloaf mix (this is a combo of beef, pork and veal; if you can't find it in the grocery store, you can just use ground beef)
tomato paste (a tablespoon or so)
red wine (about 1/2 cup or so)
1 can crushed tomatoes (28 oz)
dried oregano (1/2 tablespoon)
dried basil (1/2 tablespoon)
salt
pepper
sugar (a pinch or so; some people are anti-sugar, but I like the sweetness that it adds)

NOTE: I made a double recipe, so the measurements and photos below reflect that.

To avoid cutting everything up into tiny pieces, 

I pulse the onion, carrot and celery in the food processor until it's a fine dice 

(but not mush). I sauté that in olive oil until it cooks down. 

Stir in tomato paste until it coats the veggies. Add the red wine.

Add the ground meat to brown. I use a potato masher to break up the meat 

while it's cooking (a trick I stole from Rachael Ray!). Cook until the meat is browned.

I only use Tuttorosso tomatoes, because they are all I've every known to be used for sauce.

Add them to the pan. Add the spices and the salt, pepper and sugar.

Stir the sauce and when it starts bubbling reduce to a simmer. 

It will be thick, you can add a half of a can of water to thin it out a bit.

 My secret ingredient: parmesan cheese rind. I add one to my pot of sauce and let it melt down. it gives the sauce a creamier, nutty flavor. I was able to purchase just the rinds at my local Stop and Shop, so they either saw the demand for them, or got tired of me asking for them.

My sous chef for the day.

He can be a little bossy.

 I love bolognese with Rigatoni. It's the best for holding the chunky, meaty sauce.

Oh, and it's all macaroni, my friends. Not pasta. :)