Emptying the Pantry - Part Two: Spaghetti Bolognese (sort of)

I thought I'd start with something easy for my EtP challange - Spaghetti Bolognese. I already had these ingredients:

and then added these:

Fry chopped onion and garlic in olive oil. Smells gooooooood.

Add mince and Italian herbs (don't ask me which herbs, I just use the packet that says "Italian herbs" on it. I assume it contains basil and oregano but I have nooooo idea what else!) and brown, making sure there's no big lumps in it. Then add chopped capsicum, zucchini and mushrooms and cook for a bit (I like them to still be a little firm, so I don't cook them for too long, bearing in mind the tomatoes etc. in the next step still have to heat through).

Add a can of crushed tomatoes (or whole ones - just stick a knife in the tin and chop them up a bit first), whatever red wine you have lying about the place and some tomato paste.

Stir, simmer, serve with pasta and some grated parmesan cheese (I'm such a grub of a server. Sorry about that!).

Try not to lose half the pasta in the sink.

Unless you're eating on your own, that is, and it's going to last you five nights anyway if you DO tip half of it in the sink, in which case it is perfectly acceptable behaviour.

This recipe is adapted from the ol' faithful one that my mum taught me, the differences being that I add capsicum, zucchini and tinned tomatoes to make it less rich, and use fresh mushrooms instead of those tinned ones in butter sauce. But if you're after a super-rich bolognese, then it's just onions, garlic, herbs, mince, mushrooms in butter sauce and tomato paste. Makes a GREAT lasagne!