I was recently asked if I would like to try a recipe from the new Cirio cookery book. I would be sent the tomato ingredients to do so. I said sure, I am always happy to try out a new recipe. This one was for Tagilatelle with Ragu Sauce, and if you are thinking that doesn't look like Tagilatelle, you are right. Its not. Its whole wheat spaghetti. As a diabetic, I only eat whole wheat pasta and I did not know how to convert the recipe for the tagliatelle into whole wheat, so I didn't make the tagliatelle, but don't let that stop you from trying it!
As you all know I am a huge fan of the Cirio products. I use them all the time. When it comes to anything to do with tomatoes or tinned beans, I always buy Cirio. That's because I know that they are always going to be really good. A lot of people don't realize that the flavor of the tomatoes they choose to use in a dish can mean the difference between a dish being so/so and a dish being wow!
Which is strange really because if you choose to use so/so products when you are cooking, why wouldn't you expect the end result to be so/so as well! A good quality tinned tomato can make a huge difference to the taste, consistency and quality of any dish. In my opinion Cirio is one of the highest quality brands of tinned tomatoes on the market, produced lovingly in Italy for an authentic Italian flavor.
The recipe they sent me was a tiny bit ambiguous as far as amounts of some of the ingredients, trusting I suppose on a cooks ability to know for themself how much of certain things they wanted to use. I have added the amounts I used for these to the recipe. The end result was very tasty indeed! (Even without the Tagliatelle!)
*Tagliatelle with Ragu Sauce*Serves 4Printable Recipe
A deliciously simple meat sauce served with a simple pasta. You can make your own tagliatelle or use storebought. This sauce actually goes well with any pasta. From the people at Cirio.
Classical Egg pasta:200g flour (about 1 1/2 cups)2 eggsextra virgin olive oilsalt to taste
For the Ragu Sauce:1 stalk celery, finely chopped1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped1 medium onion, peeled and finely chopped2 cloves garlic, peeled and mincedknob buttersplash extra virgin olive oil240ml red wine (1 cup)2 dessert spoons tomato puree500g minced meat (a generous pound)500ml Cirio Passata (2 cups)(I used the Napoletana with Mediterranean herbs)sugar and salt to taste
To make the pasta beat the eggs with a dash of oil and salt. Add the flour to make a firm and elastic dough. Cover and let rest for an hour and a half in the refrigerator. Flatten the dough with a rolling pin on a lightly floured surface. Roll out into thin pasta sheets, less than 1 mm thick and cut into 7mm strips. Dust the strips with flour to keep from sticking.
For the ragu, heat a splash of olive oil along with a knob of butter in a large saucepan. Add the celery, carrot, onion and garlic and lightly fry to soften over medium low heat. Add the meat and cook, stirring until the meat is quite dry. Add the wine and bring to the boil and then simmer quickly until the wine is almost evaporated. Stir in the tomato puree and Passata. Bring to the boil, REduce to a simmer and then adjust the acidity with some sugar. Add salt to taste. Simmer while you cook the pasta.
Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to the boil. Add the tagliatelle and cook for 3 minutes. Drain well and then serve with the Ragu sauce.
This was delicious and because there are only two of us I had enough to freeze in a container for another meal. Cirio tomatoes are available at all the grocery shops in the UK. For more recipes and cooking inspiration and ideas do be sure to check out their recipe pages.
Note - I was sent a range of Cirio products to use in the recipe free of charge, but not required to write a positive review of anything. I quite simply like Cirio products and as you know, I have never made that a secret! I do love them! Buon Appetito!
