Dinner Divas - Rigatoni with Vegetable (Meat) Bolognese

This sauce ended up being a bit too strong for our tastes, but that could be because my husband and I don't drink alcohol. The wine taste was so prominent that I had to mix regular pasta sauce into it before serving. The ratio for my husband was probably 1/4 of the bolognese and 3/4 plain sauce, mine was more like 1/2 and 1/2.

You can see Giada De Laurentiis original recipe here at the Food Network site. I modified it slightly by leaving out the mushrooms, using dried herbs that I had already, and chopping the vegetable mixture more finely in the food processor so that it was more saucy than chunky to appeal to my husband. I also made it into a meat sauce for more protein by using lean ground turkey. My version is below:

Ingredients

3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons thyme
1 teaspoon oregano
2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 lb. lean ground meat (I used turkey)
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1 pound rigatoni pasta
1/4 cup Parmesan

Place the carrots, onion, bell pepper, and garlic in a food processor. Pulse the vegetables until finely chopped.

Cook meat over medium heat until no longer pink. Drain liquide and return to low heat to break up into small pieces.

Place the olive oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped vegetables, thyme, oregano, salt, and pepper and cook until tender, about 6 minutes.

Add tomato paste and continue cooking, stirring to dissolve the tomato paste.

Add red wine. Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and let the mixture simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, about 10 minutes.

Add mascarpone cheese and stir just until the cheese is incorporated.

Add meat

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes.

Drain pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid and add to the sauce mixture. Add some of the reserved pasta cooking liquid, if necessary, to moisten the sauce.

Toss with Parmesan and serve with garlic bread.