Ragu Bolognese

Bolognese sauce is very easy to prepare, it just requires a little time.
Sometimes to speed up the process I use the “fine soup groenten” available in the supermarket instead of the carrot and celery: in this way I save the time I would use to chop the veggie.
To make the best Bolognese saus I use the AH organic minced beef and the AH organic tomato passata, they really make the difference since I add almost no salt.
I usually use the ragu Bolognese to prepare lasagna, but when I am in a hurry I just serve it with pasta (either fresh or dry).


1 tbsp oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
1 garlic cloves, peeled
500g minced beef
700g bottle tomato passata
½ glass red wine
1 bay leave
freshly grated parmesan cheese


Heat the oil in large heavy pan, add onions and cook gently until translucent but not browned. Add the celery and carrots and garlic and cook, stirring, for 3 minutes more. Tip in the lean minced beef and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5-6 minutes until browned all over. Turn the heat to maximum heat and pour in the wine and allow to evaporate by half..

Once the wine is evaporated add the passata. Pour a little water into the empty tomato bottle, swish around then add to the pan. Stir in the bay leave. Bring to the boil, reduce the heat, then cover and simmer gently for 45 minutes / 1 hour. Season according to taste. Toss with cooked spaghetti, sprinkle over with grated parmesan cheese and serve.

KING CRAB

I love seafood. I always have, I love clams, scallops (obviously), lobster, langoustines, crabs..... But king crabs have been a recent discovers, I have never tasted them before moving to Holland.
They are simply delicious.
They are not easy to find and they don't come cheap, but they are worth every effort.
Since I am not very familiar with them, at first I wasn't sure how to cook them without ruin their delicate sweet flavor....so I went for something safe: pasta :-)

KING PASTA

serve 2

500 gr King crab (I know it's a lot but I like it soooo much :-)
150 gr pasta
1 onion (I have used French oignon allongé, their extremely sweet flavor goes very well with this dish)
Small handful parsley, finely chopped
Butter
2 tbsp Crème Fraiche d'Isigny (if you can find it, it makes the difference, otherwise substitute with a standard crème fraiche)

Cook the pasta in a large pan of boiling water according to pack instructions (I like it al dente so I always cook it two mins shorter than stated in the pack). Meanwhile, heat a knob of the butter in a frying pan. When it starts to sizzle, add the onion and fry for 5 min or until tender, then add the crabs and fry for 2-3 min, be careful not to overcook the crab. Swirl in the crème fraiche, season with salt and pepper, and then stir in the chopped parsley.
When the pasta is just cooked, drain and toss through the crab. Serve straightaway.