Last Night's Dinner # 48: Pappardelle Bolognese

Pappardelle Bolognese
Recipe from The Babbo Cookbook
Prep: 45 mins
Total: 2 hours (but very worth it)

I'm sorry guys, only 800 more Batali recipes to go! Just kidding - I'll try to mix it up next week, promise. I don't want to lose all of you =)

Here's another Italian classic, although, traditionally it's supposedly served with Tagliatelle. The hardest part of making this dish is finely chopping all of the ingredients. Of course you can simplify your life by using a food processor but I of course opted against it... and half-way through I was huffing and puffing - wishing that I had used the machine!

If you do decide to use the machine, just coarsely chop the veggies first so you don't end up with baby food.



You'll need:
(Serves 4)
2 medium onions, finely chopped
4 celery ribs, finely chopped
2 medium carrots, finely chopped
5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 lb pancetta or slab bacon, ground by butcher or thinly sliced and pulsed in food processor until finely chopped
1 lb ground veal
1 lb ground pork (not lean)
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
1 cup whole milk
1 cup dry white wine
1 cup water
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt *adjust to taste - I definitely used more than that!
1/2 teaspoon black pepper *adjust to taste
1 1/2 basic pasta dough OR store-bought OR dried Pappardelle (Trader Joe's has a good one)
parmigiano-reggiano for serving-Size



step 1. Cook onions, celery, carrot, and garlic in oil in a 6- to 8-quart heavy pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes.

step 2. Add pancetta, veal, and pork and cook over moderately high heat, stirring and breaking up lumps, until no longer pink, about 6 minutes.

step 3. Stir in tomato paste, milk, wine, water, and thyme and gently simmer, covered, until sauce is thickened, 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Add salt and pepper and remove from heat.

Sauce may be made 2 days ahead and cooled, uncovered, before chilling, covered. Frozen, it keeps for 1 month.

Cook pasta and assemble dish:
step 1. Heat 3 cups of bolognese sauce in a 12- to 13-inch heavy deep skillet over moderate heat.

step 2. Shake flour from pappardelle and cook in an 8-quart pot of boiling water seasoned with 2 tablespoons kosher salt, stirring occasionally to keep noodles separate, until al dente, 1 to 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup cooking water, then drain pasta in a colander (do not rinse).

step 3. Add pasta and about 1/2 cup of reserved cooking water to skillet and toss with sauce. Add Parmigiano-Reggiano and cook, tossing, until pasta is well coated with sauce and cheese is melted (add more pasta water if mixture is dry), about 1 minute. Divide among 6 warmed shallow bowls and serve immediately with additional cheese.