Christmas pasta is a slow pork ragu built on pancetta, hot Italian sausage and a pinch of allspice, spooned over penne rigate. Red wine, beef stock and four pounds of crushed tomatoes go into the pot. A Christmas Eve dinner that feeds twelve from one pan.
The quarter teaspoon of allspice or cinnamon is the whole idea here. Spread across four pounds of tomatoes it reads as warmth rather than spice, and it is the only thing separating this from a weeknight bolognese.
The card says four large servings, but her own method says half a pound of pasta for every three people. There are two pounds of penne in the list, so the real number is twelve, not four.
Christmas Pasta
Course: Main CourseCuisine: American, ItalianDifficulty: Easy4
servings30
minutes40
minutes300
kcalPancetta, hot Italian sausage and ground meat browned hard with garlic and bay, then simmered down with red wine, stock and crushed tomatoes. Spooned over penne with Pecorino and bread on the side.
Ingredients
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 bay leaf, fresh or dried
1/4 pound thick cut pancetta, chopped small
1/2 pound bulk hot Italian sausage
1 pound ground beef, pork and veal combined
1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped
1 rib celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup good quality dry red wine
1 cup beef stock
2 cans (32 ounces each) chunky crushed tomatoes
A handful of chopped flat leaf parsley
1/4 teaspoon allspice or cinnamon
Coarse salt and black pepper
2 pounds penne rigate, cooked to al dente
Grated Pecorino Romano, to serve
Fresh crusty bread, for mopping
Directions
- Brown the pancetta: Heat a deep pot over medium high heat. Add the oil, garlic, bay leaf and pancetta and brown for 1 minute.
- Brown the meat: Add the sausage and the ground meat and brown, crumbling them apart, for 5 minutes.
- Add the vegetables: Chop the carrot, celery and onion beside the stove and add them to the pot as you go. Cook with the meat for 5 minutes, then pour in the wine and cook 1 minute more.
- Simmer: Add the stock and the tomatoes, stir in the parsley and the allspice and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, drop the heat to medium low and cook at least 10 to 15 minutes, longer if you have the time.
- Serve: Cook only as much pasta as you need, half a pound for every three people. Toss it with a couple of ladles of sauce, spoon more over the top, cover with Pecorino and pass the bread.
FAQs
How many calories are in Christmas pasta?
There is no nutrition on the source, so this is calculated from the ingredients at about 545 a serving across twelve. That counts the penne and the sauce but not the cheese or the bread. At the four servings the card claims it would be over sixteen hundred.
Allspice or cinnamon, which one?
Allspice is the safer pick because it carries clove and pepper alongside the sweetness. Cinnamon alone leans dessert and can make the sauce taste odd next to the pancetta. Either way a quarter teaspoon is the ceiling, not a starting point.
Can I make the sauce ahead?
It is better the second day, which is the usual way with a long cooked ragu. Keep it in the fridge for three days or freeze it in batches for three months. Cook the pasta fresh each time, because reheated penne goes soft.
What should I serve with it?
Bread, because half the point is mopping the bowl once the pasta is gone. Something soft and pull apart beats a hard crust for that job. A tray of soft dinner rolls on the table covers it.
Is this just bolognese with a different name?
The bones are the same, a soffritto and three meats cooked down in wine and tomato. The pancetta, the hot sausage and the allspice are what push it toward Christmas. If you want another big pot main for the day, try these stuffed cabbage rolls.
