Batches of Bolognese

The world has changed so much over the last couple of weeks with the coronavirus pandemic, mandated quarantines, and social distancing. Restaurants and bars are closed, public parks and trails are off limits, nonessential businesses have shutdown, employees are either out of work or instructed to work from home, schools are closed, and grocery stores are low on stock or sold out of basic items. It feels like life has drastically changed overnight. While all of this has definitely been challenging in so many ways, it has forced me to take a moment to be still, slow down, self-reflect, learn something new, check off things from my to-do list, and connect with people virtually. It has also given me time to appreciate the simple pleasures in life like taking walks outside to enjoy nature and fresh air or cooking my favorite meals at home.

One of my favorite things to make is spaghetti bolognese because I love pasta! Plus, you can make batches of it and freeze it to eat later when you’re feeling too lazy to cook or when you’re craving a midnight snack. This weekend, I was finally able to find all of the ingredients I needed to make my old Dairy-Free Bolognese recipe. What made my evening even better is that I got to open a new bottle of wine that I ordered from Vivino, an online marketplace and community for wine lovers like myself. You can search by wine type, grape, region, food pairings, and price ranges. You can read detailed reviews and descriptions, look at ratings, and then have your favorite wines delivered directly to your door. Vivino sponsored my lovely evening cooking at home by providing me with a nice wine to pair with my meal. Now my belly and my freezer are both full. And my heart is happy!

Porcini Mushroom Bolognese

I love mushrooms. All mushrooms. Mushrooms just taste great in everything. And it’s the perfect substitute for meat. One of my favorite specialty mushrooms is porcini. I love its meaty texture and earthy flavor. I thought it would be fun (and delicious) to create a vegetarian and vegan version of my bolognese sauce with porcini mushrooms.

To create my dish, I used a variety of Alessi Food products, including their extra virgin olive oil, dried porcini mushrooms, linguine, crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, sea salt, and black peppercorn. Alessi products are fresh, high-quality, and authentically Italian. They are family owned and operated for the last 72 years! You can find their products at most local grocers or you can buy them online with free shipping on all orders over $20. If you love Italian food and cooking, definitely check out Alessi Foods and use code BELLY for a 15% discount. They offer a variety of amazing products. One thing I particularly like about their organic pasta is that it is made with bronze dies, which means it is coarser than most pastas and allows sauce to stick to it more.

My sauce is not only vegetarian but it’s also vegan. I used coconut milk as a dairy substitute to make the sauce creamy. However, I like to top my pasta with a little parmesan but you don’t have to. Happy cooking and eating!

Porcini Mushroom Bolognese (serves 6)

Dry Ingredients:

1 package (1 lb) of Alessi organic linguine or spaghetti pasta

3 packages (1.5 oz) of Alessi porcini mushrooms

Liquid Ingredients:

1 can (28 oz) of Alessi crushed Italian tomatoes

1-1½ cup tomato sauce

½ cup of dry red or white wine

½ cup of coconut milk

½ cup of porcini mushroom water

½-¾ cup of pasta water

Fresh Vegetables:

½ lb mixed mushrooms (cremini and shiitake), coarsely chopped

1 whole eggplant, roasted, peeled and mashed (optional)

1 whole sweet yellow onion, diced

1 cup of carrots, diced

1 cup of celery, diced

½ cup of fresh parsley, chopped

Herbs, Spices, & Seasoning:

2 tbsp Alessi extra virgin olive oil

2-2½ tsp Alessi coarse ground sea salt

1 tsp Alessi ground black peppercorn

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp oregano

6 sprigs of fresh thyme

6 cloves of garlic, 3 thinly sliced and 3 crushed

½ tsp red chili flakes (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Wash eggplant and trim ends.  Cut thick round slices and lay flat on a baking sheet.  Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over the eggplant and season with salt and pepper.  Bake in the oven for 45 minutes, flipping the eggplant slices over half way through.  When the eggplant has finished baking, allow to cool for at least 15 minutes.  Peel the skin off the round slices and discard. Mash up the eggplant with a knife and set aside.

Soak dried porcini mushrooms in hot water for 30 minutes.  Rinse and drain.  Keep ½ cup of the porcini mushroom water to use in the sauce.

Clean, trim, peel, and dice carrots, celery and onions.  Wash and coarsely chop the mixed mushrooms.  Thinly slice 3 of the garlic cloves and crush the other cloves.

Heat 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil over medium high heat in a large braising pan.  Sautee the onions until they turn a light golden brown.  Then add garlic, celery, and carrots to the pan.  Add 2 tbsp water.  Cook for a few minutes until they have softened. 

Add porcini and mixed mushrooms.  Sprinkle 2 tsp sea salt and 1 tsp ground black pepper.  Cook for a few minutes until the mushrooms have shrunken.  Pour in roasted eggplant.  Add 1 tsp sugar.  Mix thoroughly and allow to cook for a couple of minutes.

Add ½ cup of dry red or white wine.  Lower heat to medium.  Stir the vegetables, scraping any bits stuck to the pan.  Cook for a few minutes. 

Pour in crushed tomatoes and 1 cup tomato sauce (you can add more if you prefer your bolognese saucier).  Sprinkle in remaining ½ tsp sea salt, ½ tsp red chili flakes, and 1 tsp oregano.  Throw in 6 sprigs of fresh thyme.  Add ½ cup of the porcini mushroom water.  Mix the vegetarian bolognese.

Lower heat to medium low.  Partially cover the pan with a lid and allow to simmer for 30 minutes. 

In the meantime, bring a pot of salted water to boil and cook pasta until it’s al dente.  Save ½ cup of the pasta water.  Drain pasta and set aside.

After the bolognese has been simmering for 30 minutes, pour in ½ cup of coconut milk.  Add ½-¾ cup of the pasta water or more, depending on how much your sauce has thickened or your preference.  Mix thoroughly.  Allow to simmer for another 30 minutes partially covered.

Remove the thyme sprigs from the sauce.  Serve sauce over pasta.  Drizzle extra virgin olive oil over your dish.  Sprinkle with freshly chopped parsley.  Top with shaved parmesan.

My Favorite Bolognese!

I love bolognese. It’s my go-to Italian dish in LA. I used to like it super chunky but after having so many different variations here, I discovered that bolognese is actually really good when it’s a little creamy. Not too creamy though. I’ve made many versions of bolognese, never keeping track of measurements until now. I have always just tasted as I cooked and added whatever was needed in the moment. Earlier this year, I dated someone who believed he had Celiac and was also allergic to dairy. I wanted to make him a diary-free bolognese and I experimented with coconut milk. Surprisingly, it was delicious! While the relationship did not work out, my creamy bolognese did and I am grateful for that! It’s now one of my favorite things to make! And this time, I have it all written out so that I can recreate it whenever I want. I always have some in my freezer to eat later! Here is my slightly creamy but still chunky bolognese recipe. Keep in mind, I tend to go heavier on veggies because I love vegetables. Feel free to cut down on the vegetables. I hope you like it!

Davy’s Bolognese (Serves 6-8)

Ingredients:

1 lb ground beef

1½ cups of carrots, diced (You can cut down to only 1 cup. I generally prefer lots of veggies.)

1½ cups of celery, diced (You can cut down to only 1 cup. I generally prefer lots of veggies.)

¾ lb or 12 oz of cremini or white button mushrooms, chopped up/diced (optional —mushrooms aren’t typically included in bolognese recipes but I love them and had to have!)

1 small sweet onion, diced

1.75 lb (large) can of unsalted crushed tomatoes

1 cup of tomato sauce

½ - ¾ cup canned coconut milk

½ cup white or red wine (white preferred)

½ - 1 cup of water (or pasta water or chicken broth)

6 garlic cloves, diced

6 sprigs of thyme

3 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp black pepper

½ tbsp red chili flakes (optional-I like it a little spicy!)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 cup of shredded parmesan (optional)

1½ cup of chopped parsley (optional)

Directions:

In a large pan, heat 2 tbsp of olive oil over medium to high heat. Add onions and cook until they have lightly browned. Add garlic, carrots, and celery. Add a tbsp water. When carrots have softened, add mushrooms. Sprinkle with 1 tsp salt and ½ tsp black pepper. When mushrooms are mostly cooked, turn heat down to medium. Add meat and season with 1 tsp salt, ½ tsp black pepper, and 1 tsp sugar. Break up the ground meat into smaller pieces, lightly browning it. Add wine and stir, cooking for a few minutes longer until some of the wine has evaporated. Then pour in crushed tomatoes and tomato sauce and add chili flakes, remaining 1 tsp salt, and sprigs of thyme. Turn heat down to medium-low and let simmer for about 2 hours, with lid slightly ajar. Stir periodically. Add water (or pasta water or chicken broth) halfway through after the sauce has thickened.

After 2 hours, taste the sauce. Add additional salt or pepper, if needed. Pour in coconut milk. Simmer for another hour on low heat. Don’t worry if there is a lot of juice. Sauce will thicken as it cooks and once it sets. If it is too thick at the end, add some more water.

Serve over pasta and sprinkle with fresh parsley and parmesan.