Indulgent Bolognese
Image of similar dish from localrootsnyc.com - I am not good to taking pretty photos of pasta.
Sometimes you happen to have some highly specific ingredients in your fridge, that is, if you cook like I do. I had some duck sausage, some duck stock concentrate, and some trumpet pasta. That probably does not scream Bolognese, and I imagine it is not traditional, but it was only out-shone by an actual Bolognese Alex ordered in Bologna, which is good enough for me.
Ingredients:
2 large Carrots, finely diced
2-3 large Shallots, finely diced
2-3 Celery stalks, finely diced
OR
2-3 Tablespoons of dried Celery Flake
Olive Oil (optional)
3-4 Tablespoons of Flour
A splash of Madeira, Red Wine, Cognac, or just water
0.25 to 0.5 cups Tomato Sauce or Tomato Paste
8.5 oz Duck Armagnac Sausage or similar, removed from casing
3-4 Tablespoons concentrated Duck Stock or Demi-glace
Splash of Heavy Cream or Half and Half
0.5 pounds of Trumpet Pasta or Strozzapreti (other options in Notes below)
Grated Parmesan (optional)
Tools:
Pasta Pot, usually a large pot is needed
High sided frying pan
Steps:
Start water boiling for your pasta.
If your sausage has a high fat content, fry off in your pan and remove them to then fry the carrot, shallot and celery in the remaining fat until soft before adding back in the sausage.
If not, fry the vegetables in just enough olive oil to coat until just soft, then add in the sausage and cook until browned.
Add flour, little by little, and mix in well until the no oil is visible in the bottom of the pan.
Continue cooking for a couple of minutes to make sure the flour is no longer raw.
At this point, you may want to cook your pasta if your water is boiling. Cook to the instructions on the box, but do not discard all of the pasta water.
Add concentrated stock along with a splash of wine, cognac or water. Stir this mixture over high heat and add water if it begins to stick to the pan.
Add tomato sauce or paste, continuing to cook and adding liquid as needed.
Add in the heavy cream or half and half until you have a sauce with the consistency of a chili.
Taste and season as needed with salt, pepper, or more wine.
Toss in your cooked pasta and a splash of pasta water. You should just be able to mix the pasta into the sauce, so keep adding water until you can get the sauce to coat the pasta.
Optionally top with grated cheese, though it would be equally delicious without.
Notes:
If you cannot get your hands on duck sausage, feel free to use your favorite sausage. You might want to add more cream and more cognac or wine to up the richness.
If you also have trouble getting your hand on duck stock concentrate or demi-glace, you could use any meaty stock that you like. You will likely need to cook down the sauce for much longer, or you could pre-concentrate the stock yourself by boiling it down until it is syrupy.
Regarding pasta shape: Traditional Bolognese is served with Pappardelle or Tagliatelle, both fresh, flat egg pastas. We happened to have these trumpet pastas on hand, and they are not a common shape. A more common but somewhat similar shape in the Emilia-Romagna area, where Bologna is located, is Priest Chokers aka Strozzapreti. In the end, you can use any pasta you would like or have on hand. Even using up a mix of pastas you have left in various boxes is traditional for some home cooked meals in Italy!
I will try to make a better photo of this actual pasta, though it did look very similar to this photo. Pasta with meat sauce is not very photogenic and my skills in photography does not help.