Papardelle with Veal and Sausage Ragu

If you need to impress friends for dinner, this is a great way to do it. We had our friends Funk and Bettina over last weekend and I wanted to make fresh pasta. I was perusing epicurious for a recipe, and came across this ragu recipe that had veal, sausage, and porcini mushrooms. It was relatively easy to make, and as long as you make it the night before, all you have to do is warm it up when guests come over. The sausage adds a great, intricate flavor, the veal stew meat is tender, and the porcini mushrooms add a nice earthiness (I only used 1/2 oz because I bought one bag and that's all that was in it). I added 1/4 cup of balsamic to the recipe just because I find it adds a great tang and a little sweetness to ragus (learned it from this recipe). Make this for your next dinner and you won't regret it - especially if it's cold outside. Just toss the ragu with fresh papardelle (make it or buy it) and serve with a little grated pecorino on top.

Ingredients:

1 cup water

1/2 oz dried porcini mushrooms

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 small carrot, peeled, finely chopped

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh Italian parsley

2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped

8 ounces sweet Italian sausages, casings removed (2 links)

8 ounces veal stew meat, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup dry red wine

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 14-ounce cans low-salt chicken broth

1 28-ounce can whole tomatoes in juice

2 bay leaves

2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage

1 teaspoon fennel seeds, lightly crushed

1 pound fresh pappardelle (homemade or store bought)

Freshly grated Pecorino cheese

Directions:

Bring 1 cup water and mushrooms to boil in small saucepan. Remove from heat and let stand 15 minutes. Strain soaking liquid through paper-towel-lined sieve into bowl. Coarsely chop mushrooms. Set liquid and mushrooms aside.

 Heat oil in heavy-bottomed pot (I used Le Creuset) over medium-high heat. Add onion, carrot, 1/4 cup parsley and garlic.

Sauté until vegetables are tender but not brown, about 5 minutes. Push vegetables to side of skillet and add sausage. Cook until brown, breaking up with back of a wooden spoon, about 4 minutes.

Add veal and sauté until brown, about 5 minutes. 

Add wine and balsamic, increase heat to high, and boil until liquid is almost evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add 1 cup chicken broth and boil 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add reserved mushroom liquid. Simmer until liquid is almost absorbed, about 5 minutes.

Transfer mixture to a food processor and pulse about 4 times to coarsely chop.

Return mixture to skillet. Mix in tomatoes with juices, bay leaves, sage, fennel seeds, and porcini mushrooms. Reduce heat to low. Simmer uncovered until sauce thickens, breaking up tomatoes with the wooden spoon and adding remaining chicken broth 1/2 cup at a time, stirring occasionally, about 1 hour. 

Season with salt and pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes.

 This was my pasta drying station.