Recipe: Stephan Bogardus's Grass-fed Beef Bolognese to Serve with Cavatelli

Learn to cook like Stephan Bogardus, executive chef of The Halyard at Sound View Greenport, with this recipe for cavatelli bolognese—a fantastic autumn comfort food.

Ingredients:

1 lb Ground beef
¼ lb Onion
¼ lb Celery
¼ lb Carrots
2 tbsp Garlic
1/2 cup White wine
1 cup Tomato sauce
1/2 cup Mascarpone
Salt & pepper (to taste)
Extra virgin olive oil (as needed)

Technique:

1. In a small pot, add ground beef, ½ cup water, some olive oil and mix with your hands until all clumps are released. This process boils the meat before browning to get more uniform texture and allows you to brown the meat in a superior fashion to other methods.

2. Place the pot over high heat and bring to a boil, stir occasionally. Cook the ingredients over high heat, stirring regularly until all water has evaporated from the pot, the oil and natural fats will clarify and the meat will begin to brown as the temperature rises (boils at 212 degrees, water evaporates, oil heats to 350+ degrees).

3. As the meat begins to brown, stir more and more frequently with a spoon, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove the fond and prevent burning, lower the flame as the browning progresses.

4. Now add the garlic and vegetables along with some salt. The salt draws out the moisture from the vegetables, and that moisture will deglaze the pan, harnessing flavor and removing the fond from the pan so it will not burn through the cooking process. Cook the vegetables until the pan is almost dry and almost begins to brown again.

5. Add the wine, bring to a boil and cook until almost all moisture is gone, then add the tomato and cook until moisture has reduced by half, finish with the mascarpone and your sauce is complete. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper as needed. It stores well in a container for up to seven days or can be frozen for longer storage.

6. Boil your favorite pasta, when noodles are cooked toss in a pan of bolognese sauce, finish with parmigiano reggiano cheese or grate some on top fresh. A little fresh ground black pepper is a fantastic touch as well. Enjoy!

~This recipe comes to us courtesy of The Halyard at Sound View Greenport, thehalyardgreenport.com.