Pasta with Bolognese Sauce

Recipe courtesy of wrysmyguy

Serves 4-6

½ oz. dried Porcini Mushrooms
½ cup water
1 ¼ cups sweet white wine (Gewürztraminer. Riesling
and White Zinfandel work great)
½ small carrot peeled and chopped into ½ inch pieces
½ small onion chopped into rough ½ inch pieces
3 oz. Pancetta cut into 1-inch pieces
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes
1 ½ tablespoons unsalted butter
1 clove garlic minced
1 tsp sugar
1 ¼ lb meatloaf mix (do not use only ground beef)
1 ½ cups whole milk
2 Tbsp tomato paste
Ground black pepper to taste
¼ tsp salt
1 lb. pasta
Fresh Parmesan cheese grated for serving

Rinse the mushrooms in a small strainer under cool
running water; drain. Add to ½ cup water, cover and
microwave on high for 30 seconds. Let stand until the
mushrooms soften (5 minutes). Mince the mushrooms and
reserve the liquid for later.

Bring the wine to a simmer in a 10 inch non-stick
skillet (this works better than a Dutch oven) over
medium heat; reduce the heart to low and simmer until
the wine is reduced to 2 Tbsp. (about 20 minutes). Set
aside.

While the wine is reducing, pulse the carrots in a
food processor until broken down into rough ¼ inch
pieces. Add the onion until the vegetables are broken
down into 1/8 inch pieces. Transfer to a small bowl.
Process the mushrooms until well ground (about 15
seconds). Add the mushrooms to the carrot/onion
mixture. Process the pancetta until the pieces are
about ¼ inch each. Transfer to a small bowl. Process
the tomatoes with their juice until chopped fine.

Heat and butter the skillet you used to reduce the
wine and add the pancetta. Cook until well browned
(about 2 minutes). Add the carrot, onion and mushrooms
and continue to cook, stirring frequently for another
4 minutes. Add the garlic and sugar and cook for
another 230 seconds. Add the meatloaf mix. Breaking it
into 1 inch pieces. After 1 minute add the milk and
continue to break up the pieces of meat into ½ inch
pieces. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat and
continue to cook and break up the meat until most of
the liquid has evaporates (about 20 minutes). Stir in
the tomato paste and cook another 1 minute. Add the
tomatoes, mushroom water, ¼ tsp salt, and pepper and
cook for another 12-15 minutes. Stir in the wine and
cook for another 5 minutes. Serve over pasta and
garnish with cheese.

Mamas Marinara

Recipe courtesy of jerzeygirl4ever

3 cloves garlic peeled/crushed

1/2 a yellow onion chopped

3 T olive oil

2 28oz cans tomato puree

1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 T tomato paste

1 cup chicken broth

1 tsp. sugar

Red pepper flake to taste

Salt

Cook garlic & onion with olive oil in sauce pot over med-low heat for about 10 mins.

Add all the tomato products. Pour the chicken stock into one of the 28 oz cans and fill it the rest of the way with water (adjust accordingly for thicker/thinner sauce). Add to pot along with the sugar. Stir and bring to a simmer. Taste and season with red pepper flakes and salt, and cover. Simmer the sauce for about 1 hours. The sauce should be fairly thin but not watery and very smooth. Uncover and simmer for 3 mins if its too thin for your taste; add a little water if it seems thick.

Feel free to add some fresh basil for added flavor.

Gorgonzola Sauce for Fettuccine

Recipe courtesy of mrs.marie.g

4 oz. Gorgonzola cheese (imported or domestic)

1/3 c. milk or heavy cream

1 tsp. salt (opt., to taste) and fresh ground pepper

3 tbsp. butter (preferred) or butter

1/4 c. cream

1/3 c. grated Parmesan cheese (fresh preferred)

This sauce is creamy and mildly piquant. Gorgonzola is an Italian blue cheese; the imported (or domestic) varieties should be soft and off-white in color. Avoid any that is crumbly or dry. Other blue cheese can be substituted but expect different consistencies and taste sensations.

In a flame-proof serving dish large enough to accommodate all of the pasta as well, put in chunked Gorgonzola, milk, salt (if desired), butter. With the heat on low, mash the cheese and stir with a wooden spoon. Let cook briefly to a creamy consistency. Just prior to when the pasta (fresh is preferred) is done, add the cream and Parmesan cheese. Drain the pasta and stir into the sauce and serve immediately with additional grated Parmesan. As a main dish, this is enough sauce for four persons. As a side dish, it should serve eight persons. The sauce preparation should only take 10 to 15 minutes.

Fresh Tomato Sauce

Recipe courtesy of akayf

1 tablespoon olive oil

4-5 tomatoes, diced

1 onion chopped

4 cloves garlic, chopped

Fresh basil, chopped (I usually use about 10-12 leaves)

½ cup red wine

Sautee onion and garlic in olive oil for about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and sauté for another 2 minutes. Add wine and basil. Let simmer for at least 30 minutes. This sauce is very chunky. I usually will throw at least ½ of it in the food processor and puree it to make a smoother sauce. You could puree all of it too.

You can also add veggies to the sauce. Sometimes, I will roast mushroom and peppers in the oven and add them to the sauce after I puree it.

Basic Spaghetti Meat Sauce

Recipe courtesy of MrsD12*3*04

2 TBSP olive oil

2 TBSP butter

1 pound ground beef

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes

1 (15oz.) can tomato sauce

3 TBSP tomato paste

1 TBSP dried parsley flakes

1 tsp. Italian seasoning

¼ tsp dried basil

dash of thyme

dash black pepper

dash red peppers

½ - 1 tsp salt

Heat butter and olive oil over medium heat in saucepan.

1. When butter is melted, add onions and garlic; cook until onions are soft.
2. Add beef and brown, drain if desired.
3. Add all remaining ingredients and simmer for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Serve over cooked pasta of your choice.