Creamy Bolgenese-y

I love noodles. It doesn't matter what type - pasta (spaghetti, fettuccine, bucatini, angel hair, etc.), ramen, pho, yakisoba...I could go on and on and on and on! I just love noodles. John on the other hand, doesn't share my love of noodles. He likes them, sure, but he can't eat them everyday like I can. I really think it is his greatest weakness :) Well, the good news for me is that I am the one who shops, preps, cooks, etc. so we get to eat a fair amount of noodles.

One of my favorite noodle dishes is pasta bolognese. Bolognese is fairly easy to make and can be served with whatever pasta you have on hand. Basically, it is a tomato based meat sauce. You can really use whatever type of meat you want - beef, pork, chicken, turkey, veal. Whatever tickles your fancy. I love a combination of plain ground meat with Italian sausage. I think it just brings a little bit more flavor to the dish. In this recipe, I use a combo of ground chicken and hot Italian chicken sausage. Again, use whatever type of meat you want - this is completely up to you. 

John is not a fan of red sauce, but he is a fan if you add just a little bit of cream - hence, creamy bolognese-y.

Creamy Bolognese
Makes 1 huge pot!

Ingredients:

• 3/4 pound ground chicken
• 3/4 pound hot Italian chicken sausage removed from the casing
• 1 28 oz can of peeled San Marzano tomatoes (you could also use tomato sauce)
• 1 14.5 oz can of petite diced tomatoes
• 1 box chicken stock
• 1 medium onion diced
• 3 medium carrots diced
• 4-5 stalks celery diced
• 5+ cloves garlic minced (use as  much as you want)
• 1 bunch fresh basil leaves 
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 2-3 teaspoons of Italian seasoning (this is also to taste)
• 1-2 teaspoons of red chile flakes (optional if you like a little kick)
• 1/2 - 3/4 cup of heavy cream (optional)

How to make Bolognese:

1. Over medium high heat, brown the ground chicken and hot Italian sausage in a large pot (I do not use oil to do this because I think it is unnecessary, but you may find you need a small amount of oil). 
2. Once brown, lower the heat to medium and add in the onion, carrot, celery, and garlic. Season with the Italian seasoning, salt and pepper, and red pepper flake. Cook for an additional 3-4 minutes until vegetables start to soften.
3. In the meantime, place your San Marzano tomatoes in a blender and blend until smooth (yes, you basically just made tomato sauce so if you would like to skip this step then just use tomato sauce). Once blended, add this along with the can of petite diced tomatoes and chicken stock to your meat and veggie mixture. 
4. Chiffonade your basil and add that to the mixture as well. If you don't care about the presentation that much, you can also just blend your basil in with your tomatoes when you blen them. It tastes the same. 
5. Cover and simmer on medium low for at least an hour and up to all day. The longer it simmers, the better it will be. If simmering for several hours, remove the lid for the last 1 to 1.5 hours. 
6. 15-20 minutes before serving, lower the heat to low. Add in your cream and stir to incorporate. Gradually bring it back up to a boil (this ensures your cream doesn't break). 

Serve this over your whatever pasta you have on hand. I served it with Bucatini, which is great because you get sauce in the center of the noodles for great slurp-ability. Top with parmesan cheese and enjoy. 

You can also make this in the crock pot. Cook your meat and veggies first (steps 1 and 2), then just add everything else to the crock pot. Cook on high for 4 hours or low 6-8 hours. I have found that the sauce does tend to get thin in the crock pot, so either omit the chicken stock or use 1/2 if you prefer a thinner sauce.

Since this makes a huge pot, I always have a ton of leftovers. You can either freeze the sauce and reheat at a later date or make something else. I am going to make a rustic lasagna, which I will share in the next week or so.

Enjoy!

-H