This meatless Bolognese is so tasty you will NOT miss the meat. You can even make the sauce vegan by eliminating the Pecorino and the heavy cream. Either way it is delicious.
For this recipe, I do not use button mushrooms. I find that they are not tasty when trying to recreate the heartiness and flavor of a true meat Bolognese. Instead, I use a combination of shiitake and baby bella mushrooms. Porcini would also work great in this.
Meatless Bolognese
Ingredients
(Serves 4)
¾ Cups Olive Oil
⅛ tsp. Red Pepper Flakes
1/2 (About 4 oz) Onion
3 oz. Carrots, peeled and cut each carrot into 4 pieces
2 oz. Celery, cut each stalk into 4 pieces
2 tbsp. Tomato Paste
17 oz Mushrooms, I used 9 oz Shiitake and 8 oz. Baby Bella
2 tsp. Salt
¾ tsp. Pepper
1 ½ tbsp Fresh Rosemary, chopped
⅔ Cup Red WIne
28 oz. Canned Tomatoes, pureed
⅓ Cup Pecorino Romano, grated
¼ Cup Heavy Cream
1 lb. Pasta of Choice, I used spaghetti
Method
In a saucepan, heat up your olive oil on a low flame and add in the red pepper flakes. Boil your salted pasta water in another pot.
In the meantime, add carrots and celery to a food processor and pulse a few times until it starts to chop. Add in the onions and continue to pulse. You do not want to over process because it will become like a paste. You just want it to be chopped fine.
Add the mixture to the olive oil and begin to sauté. Cook for about 5 minutes on a low to medium flame until the veggies start to cook through.
Next, add the mushrooms to your food processor and pulse until they are chopped fine.
Add the tomato paste to the veggies and combine well. Cook for about two minutes on a low flame.
Next add in the chopped mushrooms to the pan. Cook the mushrooms for about five minutes
Season with salt, pepper and fresh rosemary.
Cook for another two minutes and then add in the red wine. Reduce the red wine by half by cooking for another four minutes.
Next add the purée tomatoes and cook on low for about 20 minutes.
Then add in grated Pecorino Romano and heavy cream. Cook on a low flame and combine well.
Boil the pasta and drain.
Combine the pasta with the sauce and serve.