Chicken Bolognese(Wolfgang Puck).........

Last week when I was at the grocery store( a daily occurence), the butcher showed me some lean ground chicken that was on sale for .99lb. He suggested it for the seniors. I bought all 12 packages of it. I kept one and brought the rest over to the agency that is in charge of the Senior dining program. I had NO clue what I was going to make with it, but for that price, I'd do some thinking about it. I decided I'm going to make a chicken, mushroom and onion pie( like a poor mans stroganoff served in a pie shell). My boss makes a beef and onion pie and I'll just sub chicken for the beef. Anyway, I digress.....

So, I remembered that when I lived in California, I used to buy this chicken bolognese pasta sauce at Gelson's Market. I loved it and it was so easy for me to just heat it up and pour if over pasta( I rarely cooked because I was in college and then Law School). I went looking for the recipe and to my surprise I found it on the foodnetwork website.

It was simple to make and had a good flavor. I made it the night before we ate it so the flavors would meld. It wasnt very saucy though. The next day, I added some good quality jarred sauce( one made with san marzano tomatoes) to stretch it out a bit further because I didnt have any of my own homeade sauce.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound ground chicken
1/2 cup finely chopped red onion
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup finely chopped carrots
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1 tablespoon thyme leaves
Pinch chili flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup tomato juice ( I used V8)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan, plus more for garnish
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 pound penne pasta( I used some fresh pasta I had in the fridge, penne would have been better)

Heat a large saute pan over high heat. Add the olive oil and heat. When the oil is hot, add the ground chicken and cook until well browned, stirring occasionally, about 8 minutes. Add the onion, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme, and chili flakes and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 5 to 8 minutes. Carefully deglaze the pan with the white wine, scraping the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Reduce until the white wine is almost completely evaporated.
Add the tomato sauce and juice and simmer until a thick sauce consistency, about 20 minutes. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Cook the penne in boiling, salted water until al dente. Drain the pasta and set aside. Add a few tablespoons of the pasta cooking water to the sauce. Add the drained pasta to the sauce along with the Parmesan and toss well. Serve in a large bowl garnished with parsley leaves.