Bolognese Beef Sauce - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 lb extra lean ground beef
6 ounces pancetta, finely chopped (or use bacon)
1 onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 carrots, finely diced
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon fennel seed, lightly crushed
1/2 cup milk
28 ounces whole tomatoes
28 ounces crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup red wine (or 2 tsp/10 mL red wine vinegar)
1 bay leaf
1 pinch granulated sugar
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped

Preparation

In a large Dutch oven, saute beef over medium-high heat, breaking up with spoon, until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Drain off any fat.
Add pancetta, onion, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme, salt, pepper and fennel seeds; cook, stirring occasionally, until vegetables are softened, about 8 minutes.
Add milk; simmer until almost all liquid has evaporated, about 3 minutes.
Add tomatoes, crushed tomatoes, wine, bay leaf and sugar, breaking up tomatoes with potato masher (I usually just use a fork). .
Bring to boil; reduce heat and simmer until thickened and mixture can mound on spoon, about 1 hour.
Discard bay leaf. Stir in parsley.
(Make-ahead: Let cool for 30 minutes; refrigerate, uncovered, in airtight container until cold. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month.).