[gingerpale]

No beef but the veal, Donna? What form of tomatoes?

This thread is driving me crazy--must have these flavors soon!
It's wonderful to have some kind of thinly sliced ham as a lasagna layer too.
I guess my spag bol is pretty boring--it has red bell pepper but no carrot, and both garlic and onion.

[Donna]

Just a tube of tomato paste - you thin it out with the milk and some water - or wine.

Saute the aromatics in olive oil, add the meats and saute until they're browned. Then add the tomato paste and milk - and water or wine. Let the whole thing simmer a couple of hours. when it's ready toss the pasta into the ragu! If you need to thin it out some more - add a bit of the pasta water at this time. It really clings to the pasta!

I have been thinking for days about making a pot of Bolognese and now this thread has prompted me to move beyond thinking!
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[Judy]

I love this thread! Even though it's a bit warm here in Adelaide to be thinking of heavy pasta sauces at the moment.

My favourite bolognese sauce is very similar to Swan's, with around 100g finely chopped proscuitto and 250g chopped chicken livers added at the end of the sauce's cooking time.
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Liking what you do is happiness

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[gingerpale]

Chicken livers! Love them -- though I haven't seen/had any decent ones in years. It must make a rich sauce..

Hi Judy!

[Donna]

GP - we get dandy chicken livers at the meat purveyor at our farmer's market. The cat is always happy when we buy some! And we know they come from humanely raised chickens.

I am imagining how well that would go in a bolognese! A sauce like velvet!
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L'appetit vient en mangeant. -Rabelais

[swan]

Guess what I'll be cooking tonight....
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[cathyeats]

I know you guys will be skeptical, but I made a really great vegetarian bolognese this weekend. Tempeh, red lentils and mushrooms stood in for the meat. Super tasty. I'll post the recipe soon!
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Cathy
www.whatwouldcathyeat.com

[David]

Not at all sceptical Cathy! Have had and made some delicious vegie bolognese! Look forward to your recipe!
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[KYHeirloomer]

Cathyeats and David, you've both got me confused.

Bolognese, by definition, is a meat sauce. So how can there be a vegetarian version?

[cathyeats]

Well KYHeirloomer, you are technically correct. I suppose Vegetarian bolognese is an imitation bolognese. But it's really good! The photo on my blog came out super pretty, too.

Next time I am thinking of adding dried shiitake mushrooms, and/or eggplant, and/or fresh herbs and/or cashew milk. And someone suggested a splash of soy sauce and balsamic vinegar. I will be experimenting for some time to come. But for now, this is my fave.

Here's what I did:

Vegan Bolognese Sauce

3 T. extra virgin olive oil
3 large cloves garlic, minced
1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
1/2 small green bell pepper, finely chopped
1 small carrot, finely chopped
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 8-oz. package tempeh, crumbled
8 oz. cremini or white mushrooms, chopped
1/2 t. crushed red pepper flakes
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 bay leaf
1 t. dried oregano
1 t. dried basil
1/2 c. dried red lentils
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 28-oz can whole tomatoes, undrained, chopped
1 c. dry red wine
1/4 c. chopped flat-leaf parsley
1/2 t. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 t. fennel seed
1/2 t. salt, or up to 1 t., to taste

Heat the oil over medium heat in a large dutch oven. Add the garlic, onion, bell pepper, carrot, celery and crushed red pepper, and saute for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Turn the heat up a bit, add the mushrooms and tempeh and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Lower the heat back to medium, stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes more. Add the remaining ingredients except salt, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, until the lentils are just tender. This usually takes 20 minutes, but I’ve had some lentils take an hour – possibly because my tomatoes were salted, which can toughen the lentils. So keep tasting it along the way to determine when it’s done. If the sauce gets too dry, add a bit of water. Add salt at the end of the cooking time. Serve on whole wheat spaghetti or use in lasagna.

Serves about 8.
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Cathy
www.whatwouldcathyeat.com

[KYHeirloomer]

My point wasn't whether it tastes good or not, Cathy----and, btw, your recipe does sound good---but with the use of the word Bolognese.

Doing so just fits your recipe in with the general dumbing-down of culinary terms and techniques that we see among TV cooking hosts, cookbooks, and some writers who should know better. If we're going to communicate then words have to have common meanings understandable by everyone. Otherwise all is chaos.

"Bolognese" refers to a particular meat sauce, with the "ese" ending signifying "in the style of." Sure, there are minor differences, as this threas shows. But meat is a constant. As is the addition of dairy.

What you've made is a vegetarian pasta sauce. What's wrong with just calling it what it is? Or, if it's different enough from other vegetarian pasta sauces, why not call it Sauce Cathy?

[cathyeats]

Wow, I didn't know my recipe name could stir such controversy! Can I call it vegetarian meat-like sauce?

So are you against names like Vegetarian Shepherd's pie, veggie burgers, etc? Those things help give people a point of reference....
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Cathy
www.whatwouldcathyeat.com

[KYHeirloomer]

What I'm against, Cathy, is culinary confusion.

Given your examples:

Yes, I'd be against the name Vegetarian Shepherd's Pie because there's a double confusion there. By definition, Shepherd's Pie is made with lamb. There are other dishes, using a similar approach. For instance, the same dish made with beef is called a Cottage Pie. With venison, a Deerstalker Pie. Etc.

Each of these has it's own flavor profile.

So, if you invited me to dinner and told me you were serving vegetarian shepherd's pie I really wouldn't know what to expect. Unless you mean you're going to serve me a pile of veggies with mashed potatoes on top.

Again, doesn't mean your dish isn't great tasting. Just that it would be a surprise to me when you served it.

"Burger" has become more generic, and, for most people, refers to anything shaped like a patty and served on a bun. If there is no qualifier, we expect it to be beef. Otherwise qualifiers should be used. So the qualifier "vegetarian" does, indeed, clarify. Just as Lamb Burger would, or Fish Burger.

Deep down I'd just as soon that people referred to them as lamb patties, or fish patties. But that's a battle there's no hope of winning.

Let's look at some other real-life examples that have bugged me:

When you read a healthy recipe that instructs you to "saute in wine," do you really know what's expected? Sauteing, by definition, is to cook quickly, over high heat, in a little oil. How does steaming something in wine relate to that? And, by extension, was the octopus I cooked in wine last night sauteed?

What, exactly, is a "zucchini carpachia?" Carpachia is, basically, slices of raw veal, pounded out. Sometimes, nowadays, beef is used. So what would be my point of reference here?

When did any random sized hunk of fish become a "steak?" A fish steak, until recently, meant a specific way of cutting. You started with a whole fish and cut it perpendicular to the backbone in slices an inch or so thick. If you then removed the bones and tied the result into a round, it was called a trussed steak. The skin was left on a steak.

These have always been standard definitions. Yet, just this afternoon at the fish counter, they were selling sea bass "steaks," no two of which were the same size or shape, and with the skin missing. Question: If I give you the recipe for George River Salmon, which calls for salmon steaks, would you know what that means?

So let's bring this back to your recipe. If you ask me to dinner, and tell me you're going to serve pasta with your famous vegetable sauce, I'm lining up with a fork. And if it's as good tasting as it sounds, I'm telling everybody, "hey. You want some great pasta? Finagle an invite to Cathy's."

But when you say you're going to serve vegan Bolognese I'm really lost. I know what a Bolgnese sauce is; it's a pasta sauce made with meat and, usually, some sort of dairy. Your sauce lacks both. Which is why, to me at least, the name does not provide a point of reference.

[cathyeats]

I've got a simple solution - I won't invite you over for dinner
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Cathy
www.whatwouldcathyeat.com

[RussNH]

Cathy, I am with you. meat-less bolognese works for me. When's dinner?