Bolognese Meat Sauce

Ingredients

• •2 tablespoons butter
• •4 tablespoons olive oil
• •1 onion, finely chopped
• •2 tablespoons finely chopped pancetta or unsmoked bacon
• •1 carrot, finely sliced
• •1 celery stalk, finely sliced
• •3 cups lean ground beef
• •2/3 cup red wine
• •1/2 cup milk
• •14-ounce can plum tomatoes, chopped, with their juice
• •1 bay leaf
• •1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• •salt and ground black pepper
• •cooked pasta, to serve

Directions

1. 1Heat the butter and oil in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add the onion, and cook over medium heat for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the pancetta
2. 2or bacon and cook until the onion is translucent. Stir in the carrot, celery and garlic. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes more.
3. 3Add the beef, and crumble it into the vegetables with a fork. Stir until the meat loses its red color. Season to taste.
4. 4Pour in the wine, increase the heat slightly, and cook until the liquid evaporates, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the milk and cook until it has evaporated.
5. 5Stir in the tomatoes with their juice and the herbs. Bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, uncovered, for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Correct the seasoning before serving on a bed of pasta.