Quick Bolognese Sauce

It was Friday evening.  I asked my little sous chef, "If you could have anything in the world to eat, whether I cook it or we go out, what would it be?"  Within a split second, her answer was, "Spaghetti and meat sauce!"  Unfortunately, my favorite recipe takes about 3 hours from start to finish and it was already 4:00 PM, so I asked her for a second option.  As she was contemplating what she wanted, I thought to myself, why don't I just come up with a quick version of the recipe?  I got to work and came up with this gem.  It not only cuts down time (it was ready in under 30 minutes!), but we all agreed that we enjoyed this version even more!  Hooray for small victories!



Ingredients:

• 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil 
• 1 c grated carrot
• 1/2 c onion, minced 
• 3 large garlic cloves, finely minced 
• 1/2 lb ground beef
• 1/2 lb ground pork 
• 1/2 c dry red wine 
• 1 tsp dried parsley 
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce 
• 1 (15 oz) can crushed tomatoes 
• 1/18 tsp celery salt
• 1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese
• Pinch of ground cayenne pepper, or to taste 
• Salt, to taste
• Pepper, to taste 
• Optional:  Heavy cream or milk for thinning, if desired

Directions:

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the carrot and onion to the hot skillet and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute longer.  

Crumble the beef and pork into the skillet.  Cook and stir until no longer pink.  Pour in the red wine, parsley, and Worcestershire and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the crushed tomatoes, celery salt, Parmesan cheese, and cayenne.  Stir well to combine.  Turn down the heat to low and simmer for 3 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper, to taste.  

The sauce is ready to serve.  If you would like a thicker consistency, allow the sauce to simmer longer until desired consistency is reached.  If you would like a thinner consistency, pour in a little heavy cream or milk.

Serve over hot pasta.

Enjoy!