Rigatoni Bolognese

You have 2 choices for the carrots, celery and onions. You can chop them finely by hand or put them in the food processor. I went with choice #2.

So, cut the ​carrots, celery and onion into chunks and throw them into the food processor. Pulse until you get a fine mixture. You don’t want a liquefied mess, but all of the vegetables should be finely chopped.

Mince the garlic by hand and set aside until later.​

Heat about 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a large Dutch oven over medium heat. Saute´the carrot/celery/onion mixture for about 10 minutes.

Add ground beef and pancetta and cook until browned, breaking up the meat as it cooks.​ Add minced garlic and cook for anotyhe minute.

Add the cabernet and stir to deglaze the pan. Make sure you scrape up all of the yummy brown bits.

Pour in the whole tomatoes and crush them with a potato masher if you have one, or you can crush them by hand and then add them to the meat mixture.​

Add tomato paste, salt and pepper to taste and the beef broth. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally. ​

After the 2 hours is up, add the cup of heavy cream, salt and pepper (to taste) and simmer for another 45 minutes. At this point if the sauce is too thick for you, you can add a little more beef broth.​

Cook pasta according to package directions, then drain it. Add one serving of pasta to a bowl and toss with sauce. Top with freshly shaved Parmesan.​

If you manage to not eat all of the leftovers, you can freeze them and then thaw in the fridge when you need a quick meal. Warm gently over low heat while you cook some pasta.​