Served over pasta, this rich, beefy tomato sauce flavored with mushrooms, garlic, prosciutto. pancetta and red wine is ideal for entertaining.

Total preparation and cooking time: 2-1/4 hours

• 2 pounds ground beef (95% lean)

• 2 cans (14 to 14-1/2 ounces each) ready-to-serve beef broth

• ½ teaspoon salt

• 1/4 to ½ teaspoon black pepper

• ¾ cup dried porcini mushrooms, broken into small pieces (about 1 ounce)

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 large onion, chopped

• ¾ cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes, not packed in oil

• 1 cup sliced cremini mushrooms

• 3 ounces pancetta, finely chopped

• 1/3 cup tomato paste

• 2 ounces prosciutto, finely chopped

• 1 tablespoon sugar

• 3 tablespoons minced garlic

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

• 1 cup dry red wine

• 8 cups hot cooked pasta

1. Brown ground beef in stockpot over medium heat 8 to 10 minutes or until beef is no longer pink, breaking up into 3/4-inch crumbles. Remove from stockpot with slotted spoon; season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Pour off drippings.

2. In same stockpot, heat oil over medium heat until hot. Add onion, cremini mushrooms, pancetta, prosciutto and garlic; cook 8 to 10 minutes or until onion is tender and most of the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally. Add wine; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer 8 to 10 minutes or until liquid is reduced by half

3. Return beef crumbles to stockpot. Stir in broth, porcini mushrooms, sun-dried tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar and thyme; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 45 minutes. Uncover stockpot; continue simmering 10 to 15 minutes or until sauce thickens. Stir in additional sugar, as desired. Serve over pasta.

Makes 8 servings.

Chef Richard’s Tip: For an impressive touch, drizzle a little good-quality truffle oil over this and other Italian dishes. Be sure to refrigerate truffle oil to keep it fresh.

Cook’s Tip: To easily chop sun-dried tomatoes, use a kitchen scissors to snip the tomatoes into small pieces.

Cook’s Tip: Pancetta is Italian bacon that is cured but not smoked Flavorful and slightly salty, it’s sliced into rounds of varying thickness from a sausage-shaped roll. Pancetta is available Italian markets and some supermarkets.

Cook’s Tip: All that’s needed to finish this meal is a colorful green salad!

Nutrition information per serving: 313 calories; 13 grams fat (6 g saturated fat; 3 grams  mono unsaturated fat); 88 cholesterol; 1014 mg sodium; 14 g carbohydrate; 2.4 grams fiber; 33 grams protein; 7.4mg niacin; 0.5mg vitamin B 2.2 mcg vitamin B 5.2mg iron; 19.8 mcg selenium; 6.3 mg zinc.

This recipe is an excellent source of protein, niacin, vitamin B vitamin B iron, selenium and zinc.

Recipe & Photo as seen in The Healthy Beef Cookbook, published by John Wiley & Sons

From Minnesota Beef Council

Beef: It's What's For Dinner!