Rigatoni with Meat Sauce

By Brie

Michael grew up with this delightful dish. It's a comforting, homey rigatoni that your family is sure to love.

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
• 2 pound Ground Beef
• 1 Onion (diced)
• 3 cloves Garlic
• 2 Carrots (small diced)
• 2 ribs of Celery (small diced)
• 1 28-ounce can Whole Plum Tomatoes
• 1 cup Dry Red Wine
• 1 Fresh Bay Leaf
• 6 sprigs Fresh Oregano
• Salt to taste
• 1 cup Flat Leaf Italian Parsley (torn) or Basil
• 1/2 cup Parmesan (grated)
• 2 tablespoon Unsalted Butter
• 2 pound Rigatoni
• Chili flake to taste
• Try cutting whole recipe in half for fewer than 8 people.
• Can substitute style of pasta--try farfalle or penne.
• Can substitute ground turkey.
• Can add Sweet or Spicy Italian sausage--just cut beef amount in half.

Preparation

Step 1

Heat a large saucepan with olive oil. Brown the ground beef with a large pinch of salt. Add garlic to saucepan and cook for 3 minutes.

Add onion, carrots and celery into a food processor and pulse to finely chop vegetable. Add vegetable mix to pan and cook for another 3 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with red wine. Add in the tomatoes, breaking them up as you stir them and bring to a simmer. Add the bay leaf and oregano and taste for seasoning. You may want to add a little salt here. Simmer for about 2 hours, skimming off any excess fat that comes to the top.

Once the sauce is done, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Drop the rigatoni in and cook until al dente. Remove from the water with a spider or slotted spoon and add to the sauce. If the sauce is too thick, add a little bit of your pasta water.

Remove from the heat and stir in parsley, parmesan, butter and a drizzle of olive oil and serve immediately.