I’ve been making traditional bolognese sauce for years, but last week I tried making a vegetarian version of my own recipe.

The vegetarian version had way less fat and was healthier with more veggies. The kicker was it tasted incredibly like my meat version. 

I use meatloaf mix to make my bolognese sauce, a blend of beef, pork, and veal. It’s full of fat but makes a great pot of bolognese. 

I followed my recipe exactly, just subbing out the meatloaf mix with one head of cauliflower and one 10oz package of mushrooms. 

The above photos show the ingredients for the veggie or the meat version.

The cooking process was exactly the same. I took photos of the steps of the veggie version and compared them to the meat version. They are almost identical. 

The top photos show the vegetarian version and the meat is on the bottom.

The experiment was an amazing success. I plan to make the veggie version for Marty and me instead of the meat version. It was that good!

Veggie version on the left and meat on the right.

If the boys are having dinner with us, I’ll make the traditional one and not try to fool them. I learned my lesson pulling that trick once with Sam. He was so mad; he didn’t eat dinner that night. 

Veggie Bolognese Sauce

I won’t lie to you; making a pot of bolognese sauce is a labor of love, whether you are making it with meat or veggies. It’s a dish that you have to pay attention to. I am sure it can be made in a crock pot or instant pot; however, I only make mine the traditional way.

Here is my newly updated bolognese sauce recipe adding the vegetarian option along with the traditional meat.  

Bolognese Sauce with meat and vegetarian versions

Ingredients

1 Tbsp Olive oil OR 1 Tbsp butter OR  1 Tbsp of bacon fat 
1 1/2 lbs 80/20 ground beef or Meatloaf mix for the vegetarian version, 1 head of cauliflower, and a 10 oz package of mushrooms chopped finely
½ tsp kosher salt
¼ tsp pepper
1 large onion finely chopped 
2 carrots finely chopped
2 celery finely chopped
3-4 cloves of garlic finely chopped
1 cup of white wine or red works too
1 cup milk (do not use skim) 
28 oz can good quality (San Marzano) tomato puree, or you can use whole or crushed tomatoes just put them into a blender to make the puree
1 cup beef or vegetable broth
½ cup real grated parmesan cheese

Directions

Melt the butter or bacon fat in a large dutch oven or add olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions, carrots, and celery. Season with salt & pepper. Mix well and cook, stirring often, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 5-7 minutes. 

Add the garlic and saute for another 2 or 3 minutes. You do not want to let the vegetables or the garlic burn. Adjust your stove temperature if necessary to prevent this from happening. 

Next, add the meat or chopped cauliflower and mushrooms to the vegetables breaking up the meat while it begins to cook. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring often until the meat, cauliflower, and mushrooms are completely cooked. 

Add the wine to the pan scraping up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Let the wine reduce for about 3 minutes. Add the milk and stir. Keep stirring until the meat mixture absorbs the milk, approximately 5-7 minutes. 

Add the tomato puree and beef stock mixing well. Bring to a simmer, then continue to simmer on very low, partially covered, 2 hours for vegetarian and 3 hours for the meat version.

Stir often to prevent it from sticking to the bottom of the pan. Skim off any fat that rises to the top.

Check and stir often, making sure the sauce isn’t getting too thick. If this happens while the sauce is cooking, add ¼ cup water, more or less when needed to loosen the sauce. Check to make sure the stove temp isn’t too high.

Add the cheese and stir to combine. Check for seasoning and adjust to your taste. In a large bowl, toss with the pasta of your choice, making sure the pasta is lightly coated with enough bolognese sauce.

Serve with the rest of the bolognese sauce on the side and more grated parmesan cheese.

Buon Appetito!