Italian Sausage and Beef Bolognaise

Good ol' Spaghetti Bolognaise just got exciting.  This was absolutely to die for.... and just raised the bar for "Comfort Food".  I would have to say one of my new all time favourite pasta sauces.  The thought of putting Italian sausage into the beef sauce was something I had not thought of doing before although saying this I have made Rigatoni Milano before just using pork sausage as the meat component in the sauce..  

Not the quickest to make but definitely worth all the effort.  The Italian sausages need to be skinned and cut/broken into small bite size pieces before cooking.  As usual I managed to sneak in extra vegetables also these were not that recognizable by the time the sauce had finished cooking - winner on the fussy kid front.

The additional herbs complimented the already existing flavour of the Italian sausage which all enhanced the thick rich tomato sauce.  My favourite undertone was the fennel, both from the sausage flavourings and the fennel seeds but everything combined made my taste buds dance.  

The kids really enjoyed this different sauce even with our son Oliver asking "Please Mam can I can some more?"  

And of course I said..... "Yes you can!

Italian Sausage and Beef Bolognaise

Serves: 8

1 kilogram Italian sausage, skins removed and cut into small chunks

1 kilogram lean ground beef

2 brown onions, finely diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 x 425 grams tinned diced tomatoes

1 cup tomato paste
700 gram bottle passata (tomato puree)

1 cup water

2 tablespoons white sugar

3 teaspoons dried basil leaves

2 teaspoon fennel seeds

2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

2 tablespoons dried oregano

2 tablespoons dried parsley

1 tablespoon salt

freshly ground black pepper
4 carrots, grated
2 large zucchini, grated

400 grams pasta, of your choice
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a large frying pan cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. 

Transfer to a large saucepan and stir in the diced tomatoes, tomato paste, passata, and water. 

Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, oregano, parsley, salt, and season with freshly ground black pepper. 

Add carrot and zucchini.  Stir well until well combined.  Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally until slightly thickened.

Meanwhile bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook pasta in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta, and rinse with cold water. Set aside.  

When ready to serve, place pasta in serving dishes and top with pasta sauce.  Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese, if desired.

(Click here for a printable version of this recipe)