Bolognese Sauce

My super cool roomie got me a cooking magazine for Christmas, Cuisine at home, which I was excited about because I always wanted to steal hers when it came to Gracewood. I also think it was a ploy to get me to post on the blog again, well done Rach.

Given my love for cooking with meat, I decided to make the lightened bolognese sauce which was delicious! I didn't want to cook sausage so I used Tofurkey Italian sausage. I thought it was very good but I can see how others may hold different opinions for tofu sausage.

Here is the recipe. And it was a lightened version of the sauce so while it may not be good for you (unless you use some tofu meat products :), it wasn't that bad.

Lightened Bolognese Sauce

Heat:
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 lb ground turkey breast
8 oz bulk Italian turkey sausage (or tofurkey:)

Process:
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced carrot
1/2 cup diced celery
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 cup 2% cottage cheese (I used ricotta instead)

Stir in:
1/4 cup tomato paste (I used sundried tomato spread- forgot this at the store)
1 can diced tomatoes in juice
1 cup dry red wine
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp each dried oregano and basil
1/2 tsp each kosher salt and red pepper flakes
1/2 cup neufchatel
1 cup chopped fresh parsley

Heat oil in large saute pan over med-high heat. Add turkey and sausage break into smaller chunks, cooked until browned.

Process onion carrot, celery, and garlic in processor until minced; add to browned meat. Cook vegetables until softened (5 mins). Process cottage cheese in processor until smooth(2 mins); stir into meat mixture in saute pan.

Stir in tomato paste, cook 1 min. Add tomatoes, wine, vinegar, oregano, basil, salt, and pepper flakes. Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer sauce 40-45 mins stirring occasionally. Add the neufchatel, stirring until melted, then stir in parsley.