Farfalle with Lamb Ragu

We've had a half pound of lamb stew meat sitting in the freezer for awhile that needed to be used soon. A quick run through the meat grinder attachment of our Kitchen Aid turned it into the perfect meat for this pasta dish.

I will say Matt was dubious about dinner. He just doesn't like lamb as much as I do but once he started eating it he declared loved it. For a quick cooked sauce it had a nice rich flavor. The original recipe called for less tomatoes than I used & some chicken broth. I decided to just use all tomatoes & added some tomato paste. I think the broth & the pasta cooking water they also wanted you to add, would just water the sauce down. The ricotta was a wonderful in this, when you stirred it in the whole dish began lovely & creamy.

You could easily substitute ground beef for the lamb in this recipe though the flavor will be a little different, still good but different.

Farfalle with Lamb Ragu
(Adapted from Cooking Light March '10)

1 T olive oil
8 oz ground lamb (beef would work too)
kosher salt
1/2 c onion, chopped
1 small carrot, finely chopped
leaves from 1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c white wine
2 c crushed or diced tomatoes, undrained
1 T tomato paste
pepper
8 oz farfalle
ricotta

Heat 1 teaspoon of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the lamb & cook through, breaking it up as you cook, about 5 minutes. Remove the lamb from the skillet draining any fat. Season the lamb with a pinch of salt & set aside.

Add the remaining olive oil to the skillet & stir in the onion & carrot. Cook until tender, about another 5 minutes. Add the rosemary & garlic then cook for a minute more. Return the lamb to the skillet. Stir in the wine & bring to a boil. Cook until almost all the liquid is gone. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, a few grind of pepper & a couple pinches of salt. Bring to a simmer. Let simmer uncovered until reduced to a thick sauce, about 15 minutes depending on how liquid your tomatoes were.

While the sauce is simmering cook the pasta according to the directions. Drain. Stir the pasta into the sauce.

Sprinkle some ricotta over each serving.

4 servings

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