Hearty Italian-Style Meat Sauce with Penne

Tear bread into 4-5 pieces and add it to a food processor with milk, salt and a few cracks of black pepper, and 1 teaspoon thyme. Pulse 10 times, scraping as necessary, until mixed well. Add beef and pork to the food processor. Pulse 5 more times until well combined.

Heat olive oil in a large sauce pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and mushrooms and cook for 8–10 minutes, or until they are softened and well browned. Stir in garlic and tomato paste and cook, stirring constantly, about 30–60 seconds more. Pour in water and add 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, scraping the bottom with a wooden spoon to pick up all the browned bits of flavor.

Add the beef-pork mixture and cook for a few minutes until meat is no longer pink. Break up the chunks of meat with a potato masher or a wooden spoon. Add the diced roma tomatoes and crushed tomatoes (optional, use if you want more sauce), and bring the mixture to a low boil. Turn heat down and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

When the sauce is done simmering, stir in Parmesan and remaining 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves.

During the final 15 minutes of cooking time, bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Season with 1 tablespoon salt and drop in penne pasta. Cook until al dente, following instructions on the package. Drain, reserving ½ cup pasta water, and return to pot. Add 1 cup of the meat sauce and ¼ cup of the pasta water to the pasta and toss to combine.

Serve the pasta with more sauce on top. Sprinkle grated Parmesan and fresh basil over top.