Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle

Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle is a delicious and mouthwatering dish. It is ideally for those who love pasta with Bolognese sauce – but prefer it without the meat!  Loaded with fresh vegetables, tomatoes, and basil, you can’t help but fall in love with this Vegetarian Bolognese sauce!  Perfect for any special occasion, Sunday dinner, and even a date night!  

What is Vegetable Bolognese?

Our vegetable bolognese is a take on our Mom’s classic Bolognese sauce but only we made it with a variety of vegetables instead of ground beef. The vegetables not only gives a similar texture, but the flavor is divine!

What is Pappardelle? 

Pappardelle is a wide ribbon-shaped pasta, similar to wide fettuccine, originating from Italy’s Tuscany region. 

The pasta has a textured surface that allows any classic Italian sauces to lusciously coat it. It is a pasta that works perfectly with hearty sauces like our Mom’s Classic Bolognese Sauce, Amatriciana, and this Vegetable Bolognese Sauce! 

Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle is a simple recipe and anyone can make it with a few easy steps! 

For our vegetable bolognese recipe, you will need 5 vegetables, along with fresh basil, San Marzano tomatoes, and a package of imported pappardelle pasta.

• Onions
• Garlic
• Carrots
• Celery
• Mushrooms
• Fresh Basil
• 1 can (35 ounce) of San Marzano Tomatoes
• 1 package of imported pappardelle pasta

How To Make Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle?

(*Full recipe card on the bottom!)

1.  First, prep all the vegetables.  Finely chop carrots, celery, onion, garlic, and mushrooms and placing them onto a plate.  Then finely chop fresh basil and set it aside. 

2.   Next, heat olive oil and butter in a large saucepot.  Then toss in all the vegetables, and all at once (except the basil).  Simmer veggies for a few minutes, until softened.  

3.   Then stir in the fresh basil. 

4.   Pour in the wine!  And simmer for a few minutes more to reduce the wine a little. 

5.   Finally, add in the tomatoes!  Cover and simmer for 30 to 35 minutes more.  And the sauce is done! 

Why we LOVE this Vegetable Bolognese Sauce?

All the vegetables in this Vegetable Bolognese sauce are packed with vitamins and minerals.  It is a great way to pack a meal with nutrients, especially with mushrooms: you can read about them in this brief article on Healthline.com.

COOK’s NOTES and TIPS:

• When it comes to making the best tasting sauce, it is important to always use good quality tomatoes.  Choose tomatoes from San Marzano, these are imported from Italy, and they are called CENTO.  
• You can add a few more mushrooms coarsely chopped into the sauce to give it a thicker texture like meat bolognese version.  I minced my vegetables, but next time I will only chop them to get more meaty texture.
• ALWAYS use fresh basil!  And a lot of it in this sauce – it makes a huge difference in flavor!

• We prefer to toss a Parmigiana rind into the sauce while simmering for the last 15 minutes.  Then fish it out and discard, before you serve.  The rind will slowly melt and give this vegetable bolognese sauce an extra punch of richness and savory flavors. 

• Also, drain the pasta and toss in an additional 2 tablespoons of butter into the pasta.  This will also give the pasta a shiny glow and a little richness it deserves. 

• Also, just before you serve it with the vegetable sauce, stir some of the sauce into the noodles (about 2/3 cup) just to coat the noodles. 
• Then serve into individual dishes with extra sauce on top.  And don’t forget the grated Parmesan cheese at the table!

Can We Taste the Mushrooms in the Sauce? No, you don’t taste the flavor of mushrooms which is why this Bolognese sauce is SO AMAZING!

Can We Use Any Mushrooms?  I’m not sure, because there are a variety of mushrooms, but we prefer these:

• button mushrooms –  they come in white and brown and have the mildest-tasting flavor.
• cremini mushrooms – are darker, firmer, and more flavorful than the white button mushroom. 
• porcini mushrooms –  are very aromatic, with a woodsy flavor.  You can find these mushrooms dried in packages but can be easily reconstituted by soaking in hot water. 

To Store and Freeze:

• Once this vegetable sauce is cooled completely, you can transfer it into a sealed container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
• It will freeze up to one month. 

Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle is an exquisite dish!

This is such a delicious dish.  Serve this sauce over pappardelle or your favorite pasta.  You can layer it into your lasagna, or scoop it over polenta.  The possibilities are endless!

Your family and friends will love this recipe, and they will never notice the meat is even missing.  I guess you’ll have to see for yourself! 

Try it!  You won’t be disappointed! 

ENJOY!!

Finally, enjoy these delicious recipes!

• Angel Hair Pasta with Lemon Sauce 
• Wild Mushroom Ragu Recipe
• Zucchini Tomato Sauce Over Fusilli Pasta
• Rigatoni all’ Amatriciana 
• Bucatini with Truffle Oil and Ricotta Salata

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle

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Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle is the delicious and mouthwatering dish. An ideal recipe for those who love pasta with Bolognese sauce- but without the meat!  Loaded with fresh vegetables, and San Marzano tomatoes, after one taste, you can't help but fall in love with this dish.  Perfect for special occasions, Sunday dinner, and date-night!  

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes

Total Time 55 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter - divided
• 1 cup of yellow onion - finely chopped
• 1 cup finely chopped celery (about 2 stalks)
• 1 cup finely chopped carrots (about 2 carrots)
• 1 cup finely chopped Mushrooms (about 12 sliced Baby Bella mushrooms)
• 2 garlic cloves - minced
• 1/2 cup white wine or red wine
• 2/3 cup freshly chopped basil, and extra for garnish
• 1 can (35-ounces) of peeled San Marzano tomatoes - crushed by hand, or pulse only 3 times in food processor
• 2 tsp. of salt - divided
• freshly ground pepper, to taste
• optional: one parmigiana rind
• 1 package (12-ounces) of Pappardelle pasta
• grated Parmigiana-Reggiano cheese, for serving at the table

Instructions

1. First, in a food processor or mini-chopper, finely chop the onion, celery, carrots, mushrooms, and garlic. Place them onto a plate. Set them aside.
2. Next, heat olive oil with 1 tablespoon of butter in a large saucepot or in a Dutch oven, and over medium heat. When the butter is melted, add the vegetables, and all at once. Then season the vegetables with 1 teaspoon of salt and add some fresh black pepper (to taste).
3. Cook the vegetables until they softened, about 4 to 5 minutes.
4. Now let's deglaze the vegetables! Pour in the wine, and bring it to a low simmer. Using a wooden spoon, stir and scrape up the browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Then cover with a lid and simmer until most of the liquid is absorbed about 3 to 5 minutes.
5. Stir in the fresh basil.
6. NEXT, open the can of San Marzano peeled tomatoes. Toss the entire can into a food processor, (you can do this in small batches if needed) and only pulse 3 times. Or you can crush them with your hands. You want the tomatoes to be chunky, this will add some texture to the sauce. Transfer them into the pot with the vegetables. Stir and cover with the lid.
7. Continue to simmer the sauce on low heat, for about 25 to 30 minutes, until the sauce thickens a little. Toss in the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Taste the sauce, and adjust the seasonings as desire. And Turn off the heat.
8. Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling water. Toss in 2 teaspoons of salt. Then toss in the pappardelle pasta and follow the directions to the package. Pappardelle should be al-dente, which means tender to the bite. Do not overcook the pasta.
9. Drain the Pappardelle, and toss in one or two additional tablespoons of butter into the pasta, stir until the butter is completely melted. This will give a shiny appearance to the pasta before you serve it.
10. Then stir into the pasta some vegetable bolognese sauce ( about 1/2 cup, or so) to coat the noodles.
11. Serve pappardelle in pasta dishes with additional bolognese sauce on top, and garnish with freshly chopped basil on top. Serve with grated cheese at the table.
12. Yields: 5 1/2 cups of vegetable sauce

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

servings4

Serving Size:

1 serving
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 500Total Fat: 18.4gCarbohydrates: 61.1gFiber: 5.7gSugar: 3.5gProtein: 13.2g

• In case you are interested, the beautiful plate which was a gift from a dear friend of mine is from Lenox Autumn Gold Fine China.

That’s it friends!  Are you cooking and baking with us?  If you make our mouthwatering Vegetable Bolognese with Pappardelle, let us know and leave a comment with a star rating in our recipe card! 

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Thanks for stopping by!

xo Anna and Liz