One of my friend's has been raving about Barefoot Contessa's new book How Easy is That. I decided to give it a try when another friend came for dinner. This simple, fast bolognese didn't disappoint! I can't imagine I'll ever slave for hours over the stove again to make a hearty meat sauce!
I've served this over homemade spinach egg pasta and gnocchi.
Weeknight Bolognese
Adapted from Barefoot Contessa, How Easy is That?
•2 tbsp olive oil
•1 pound ground meat (I've used bison & beef)
•1 tbsp dried oregano (or a bunch of fresh- can you ever have too many fresh herbs?)
•¼ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
•1 ¼ cups dry red wine, divided
•1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
•2 tbsp tomato paste
•2 tsp salt
•1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
•¼ tsp ground nutmeg
•¼ cup chopped fresh basil leaves, lightly packed
•¼ cup heavy cream
•½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
Directions
- Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground meet and cook, crumbling the meat until the meat is no longer pink and has started to brown.
- Add oregano, and red pepper flakes and cook for 1 more minute.
- Pour 1 cup of the wine into the skillet and stir to scrape up any browned bits.
- Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, salt, and pepper, stirring until combined.
- Bring to a boil, lower heat, and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Add the nutmeg, basil, cream, and the remaining ¼ cup wine to the sauce and simmer for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally until thickened.