RAGU BOLOGNESE SUFFICIENT FOR 6
1 1/2 ozs. butter
3 ozs. streaky bacon
Onion
Carrot
A stick of celery
A crushed clove garlic
2 or 3 cloves or a pinch of powdered cloves
1 1/2 cups stock or water, or for preference 1 cup stock plus 1/2 cup white wine

Optional
A few chopped mushrooms
Three or four chicken livers, chopped

"A few chopped mushrooms may be added if liked, and if you have three or four chicken livers available, these, chopped, are a great improvement....Having minced the meat, place in a stewpan with the heated butter, add chopped bacon, onion, carrot and celery, all of which can, to save time, have been passed through the mincer. Add two or three dried cloves or a pinch of powered cloves, and allow to cook until the meat has browned and the vegetables are a golden colour. Add the stock and/or wine little by little, add tomato paste moistened with a little stock, stir well; add salt and pepper. Cover meat with the liquid, lower heat and allow the mixture to cook gently for another 15 minutes. In one of the traditional recipes milk is used instead of stock, which results in a richer-tasting sauce, but this is purely a matter of personal preference. At the end of the cooking time add the cream and mix well. Excellent sauce for serving with spaghetti."

This recipe was taken from "Italian Cooking" by Dorothy Daly. It was published by Spring Books in Great Britain. For the complete copyright-free cookbook see www.archive.org.... Photo: Mary Melfi.

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