ITALIAN CHRISTMAS RECIPES: Quick Bolognese Sauce . . . Cioppino

Quick Bolognese Sauce

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 each, small, chopped: yellow onion, rib celery, carrot

2 pounds ground chuck

¾ cup dry red wine

1 cup each: chicken broth, crushed tomatoes

½ teaspoon salt (optional)

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add vegetables. Decrease heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add ground beef; increase heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring occasionally, until evenly brown, about 15 minutes.

Stir in wine, scraping up any browned bits from bottom of pan. Stir in broth and tomatoes; cook until flavors blend, about 40 minutes. Add salt if necessary. Skim off fat.

Yield: Serves 6.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 329 calories, 23 grams fat (8 grams saturated), 88 milligrams cholesterol, 4 grams carbohydrates, 24 grams protein, 239 milligrams sodium, 1 gram fiber.

Cioppino

6 finely chopped garlic cloves

1 chopped medium yellow onion

½ finely chopped bell pepper

½ finely chopped celery stalk

1 finely chopped hot chili pepper

¼ cup olive oil

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 cup dry rose wine

5 large tomatoes grated or 1 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes

2 cups seafood stock or chicken stock

1 tablespoon crumbled dried oregano

1 pound medium shrimp

1 pound firm fish (halibut, swordfish, monkfish, tuna) cut into large chunks

½ pound cooked Dungeness crab meat

1 to 2 pounds various shellfish (littleneck clams, mussels, oysters) in the shell

2 tablespoons finely chopped parsley, for garnish

2 tablespoons finely chopped basil, for garnish

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Scrub the shells of the clams, mussels, oysters well.

In a large, deep pot or Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat for 3 minutes. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper and hot chili pepper, mix to combine and cook until the onion is translucent. If you get a little browning, that’s good, but the goal here is not to brown everything.

Add the garlic, some salt and dried oregano, then cook for another 2 minutes.

Add the tomato paste and mix well to combine. Turn the heat down to medium, and cook this until it turns the color of brick, about 4 to 5 minutes. Do not let it burn.

Turn the heat up to high, then add the wine. Mix it well and let the alcohol cook off for 1 to 2 minutes. Then add the seafood stock and tomatoes. Bring it to a boil, then drop the heat to medium-low. Simmer for 20 minutes.

Now, add the seafood: Start with the fish, which needs the longest time. Let fish cook for 5 minutes, then add clams, mussels, etc. Cover pot and let this cook for 3 to 5 minutes.

Uncover the pot — the clams should have opened by now — and add the shrimp. When the shrimp are mostly pink, about 2 to 3 minutes, add the Dungeness crab meat.

Turn off the heat, adjust the seasoning. Ladle the stew into deep bowls. Garnish with a mix of the parsley and basil and serve with sourdough bread.

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