"How to Make the Ultimate Family-Favorite Bolognese Recipe"

I have been making and modifying my spaghetti sauce for years and it is one of my family's favorite and most requested dinners. It has been hard for me to share my Bolognese Recipe, because I rarely measure anything and I often tweak it based on what I have at hand or how I am feeling at the moment. Years ago, I started sneaking in pureed veggies to encourage my little girls to eat more vegetables, but now I always add them, because I think it adds so much depth and flavor. I used to only add fresh herbs, but then started incorporating a mixture of dry and fresh herbs. You can also substitute ground turkey.

Ingredients:

• One Large White Onion

• 1 Large Red Bell Pepper

• 1 Large Zucchini

• 1 Carrot

• 1-2 Stalks Celery

• 4-5 cloves garlic, crushed

• 2 large cans crushed tomatoes

• 1 lb. Italian Spicy Sausage

• 2 lbs. Lean Ground Beef

• 3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

• 2-3 tsp. Garlic Salt

• 2-3 tsp dried oregano

• 2-3 tsp dried parsley

• 2-3 tsp black pepper

• one cup grated parmesan plus more for serving

• Crushed Red Pepper (optional)
  

Directions:

• Add 2-3 tbsps. of Olive Oil in a large pot

• In a separate large frying pan brown the sausage and ground beef together, crumble the meat often so that it browns evenly and is combined in small pieces. Add 1/2 of the dry spices and half the garlic salt to season the meat **You can dice all of this by hand, which I often do, especially if I am making it somewhere other than my kitchen. However, I love to use my food processor to chop all of the vegetables.

• Start with the onion. Chop it into quarters and then pulse in your food processor

  • add the onion to the oil on medium heat, salt and pepper, and sauté for 2-3 minutes

• While sautéing the onion, pulse the carrots and celery. Add them to the pan with the onion and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté for 2-3 minutes until softened.

• Follow with the zucchini and red bell pepper adding each to the pan season with S&P then sauté until softened.

• Add the crushed garlic (I love garlic and use quite a bit) to the vegetables, add the crushed pepper if using

• Add the ground meat to the pan combine and season with garlic salt and the remaining spices.

• At this point, I add the meat and vegetable mixture to a crockpot and then add the crushed tomatoes. However, if you prefer to cook your sauce quicker, you can just add the crushed tomatoes to your pan, bring to boil and then simmer for 30-45 minutes

• I cook my sauce on low in the crockpot for at least 2 hours, but often 4-6 hours.

  • halfway through cooking, I add the chopped fresh Italian parsley.

• About 30 minutes before I am ready to serve the sauce, I add the basil and parmesan

Serve over your favorite noodle, or try zucchini noodles or my lasagna recipe.