Veggie loaded Bolognaise - Thermomix style

Vegetable packed bolognaise - Thermomix or no Thermomix!

I have been making this vegetable packed bolognaise sauce for a couple of years now so don't turn off if you don't have a Thermomix!  But in saying that, it now takes me literally seconds of preparation with a few less dishes!  This recipe is brilliant for a couple of reasons.  1.  It is loaded with veggies that the kids wont even realise are in there (more on that in my next post on kids and fussy eating) and 2.  It tastes delicious (I'd love to hear if you think so too) and is all natural (especially when using the Thermomix vegetable stock concentrate!).  You really don't need to use those jars of pasta sauce any more!

We actually had this for dinner tonight and the stars seemed to have aligned because the boys were having a ball entertaining themselves this afternoon, so I decided to make the pasta from scratch too!!  Well, actually it sounds a lot more fancy than it really is.  The Thermomix mixes and kneads the flour, eggs and olive oil into a pasta dough in just two minutes so the most laborious part is rolling the pasta through the pasta machine, which I actually find quite cathartic!!  And what got me really excited (!!) was popping out to my herb garden to add the final touch to my sauce, freshly picked basil and oregano.  Seriously satisfying.  Oh, and when Liam gave me the 'well done Mum this tastes amazing', well, that was the definition of an awesome day!

So anyway, here is the recipe, both Thermomix and non-Thermomix methods!  I hope it becomes your 'family recipe' just as it is ours.

Ingredients:

2 carrots, chopped in 3 for TMX or finely grated 
1 zucchini, chopped in 3 for TMX or finely grated
1 onion, peeled and halved for TMX or finely diced
5 mushrooms, left whole for TMX or finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and left whole for TMX or finely chopped
30g olive oil
450g minced beef (or half half mix of minced beef and pork)
1-2 tbs TMX vegetable stock puree or 2 tsp commercial vegetable or chicken stock
70g dry white wine
150-200g tomato paste
1 tin tomato puree (or crushed tomatoes if you prefer)
1 handful fresh basil and oregano leaves, finely sliced  (or 1 tbs each of dried basil and oregano)

TMX Method:

1. Place carrots, zucchini, onion, mushrooms and garlic in TM bowl and chop for 5 seconds on speed 7.
2. Add oil and minced meat and cook for 10 minutes at Varoma temperature on Reverse + speed 1.
3. Add remaining ingredients except for herbs (if using dried, add now) and cook for 20 minutes at 100 degrees Celsius on Reverse + speed soft. 
4. Stir through fresh herbs if using and serve. (or place in Thermoserver to keep hot)
5. Serve with cooked pasta of your choice.

Traditional Method:

1. Heat oil in frypan on medium heat.  Add onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until onion is transparent, taking care not to colour the garlic too much.
2. Add the meat and brown, breaking up into a fine crumb.
3. Add wine and allow to reduce slightly.
4. Add the remaining veggies, stir through, then add remaining ingredients (except herbs if using fresh).
5. Simmer for at least 20 minutes but the longer it cooks the richer the flavours become.  Add water if needed.
6. Serve with cooked pasta of your choice.

 I tend not to cook with precise measurements a lot of the time but I've done my best to quantify everything here!  Sometimes I might add a stick or two of celery, you could change the herbs if you have others you prefer, red wine instead of white, or even add some chopped prosciutto when browning the meat.

Now don't mind my bad food styling for this pic!  By this stage the boys were screaming at my feet for food so there was no time for pretty placement of noodles ( ;  If you are reading this Donna Hay, I would style it MUCH better for your magazine!!! (One can dream!)

Bon appetite ( :

UPDATE - 27th April 2012
If anyone was inspired to make fresh pasta, I just wanted to let you know I saw K-Mart (Australia) are selling pasta makers for just $15!  Not endorsing or recommending as I haven't used one but if nothing else its an affordable way of trialling pasta making in your house and if you really get into it, perhaps the more expensive Italian models will then feel more feasible!  And funnily enough, the other night I gave Dan shop bought pasta cause I only thought I had enough fresh left for the boys (poor Dan I know!) but then there was enough fresh for him to have a second serve.  He said the bought spaghetti was noticeably more salty which isnt a word he would have thought to describe it previously.  Interesting (and scary) how our taste buds adapt....