Pasta Ragu in a Pecorino Cheese Bowl

I LOVE pasta and pasta sauce. I love the texture of the noodles. I love the flavor the noodles, and most significantly, I love, love, love pasta sauce. Because I love pasta so much I tend to make it a whole lot--I'd say about once a week. When you make a dish once a week, you really do have to switch it up every so often if you (A) don't want to get sick of it, and (B) if you want to get away with continuing to serve it over and over without boring whomever you are cooking for (in my case, my husband and daughter. My son would never get sick of it providing it was brimming with meat, which this dish is.) Also, because the sauce is so entirely loaded with meat, and because I'm serving it in a cheese bowl, I tend to make the bowls on the small side. The dish is delicious but very rich, so plan to serve it with a lightly-dressed green salad. Give it a whirl!

Ragu
1 lb spicy bulk Italian sausage
1 lb ground brisket
4 T extra virgin olive oil
1 shallot, coarsely chopped (I only use shallot because of its ability to "dissolve" in foods. 1/2 of a large onion is perfectly fine, and actually more traditional)
1 C carrots, coarsely chopped
1 C celery, coarsely chopped
1/2 green bell pepper, coarsely chopped
1/2 red bell peper, coarsely chopped
1/2 lb. white button mushrooms, coarsely chopped
2 C red wine (I used Cabernet Sauvignon, but anything you wouldn't mind drinking is good enough to create a delicious sauce.)
2 C beef stock
1 quart jar of tomato sauce (I use the stuff I made, but you could use whatever you prefer from the market if you didn't get to make yours)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dried oregano

Pasta
1 lb dried pasta, cooked according to instructions (I used rotini, but you could use whatever type you prefer)

Cheese Bowl
I make small bowls that hold about 1/2 - 3/4 C of pasta and sauce. If you want larger bowls, use a larger pan and quantity of cheese.

Small Bowls
1/2 C Pecorino or Parmesan Cheese, finely grated, per person

Large Bowls
1 - 1 1/2 C Pecorino or Parmesan Cheese, finely grated , per person

Make the sauce. 
Start your sauce about 4 hours before you want to eat. Heat 2 T of oil in a large sauce pot over medium heat. Add your chopped vegetables and cooked until they are softened and browning around the edges. 

Remove from pot and set aside. Add remaining olive oil and warm. Add sausage and ground meat. Cook until well-browned. Return the cooked vegetables to the pot. Increase heat to high. Add wine and stock. 

Cook, stirring regularly, and reduce by half. Add the tomato sauce, salt and oregano.  Reduce heat to low, cover and walk away. (I recommend catching a yoga class.)

Make Cheese Bowls
In about 3 hours, warm a non-stick pan over medium heat. Because I was making small bowls, I used a small omelet pan. If you are making larger bowls, use a larger pan. Sprinkle cheese in an even layer in a circular shape. 

Allow to cook for about 1-2 minutes, or until the edge curl slightly. Using a small spatula, lift the edges first, and then, the entire disk. Immediately place over the bottom of an inverted jelly jar for smaller bowls, or if you want a larger bowl, just place over a bowl that is the size you want to use.  

Set aside and allow to cool. (Do not overcook the cheese bowls or they will become brittle and break, rather than bend to your desired shape.)

Make Pasta
I made rotini because I like the way the sauce gets stuck in its ridges, but you could make whatever pasta you prefer. I would just say that the shorter pastas hold thick, meaty sauces better. Make the pasta according to its instructions, adding the strained pasta to the pasta sauce. 

Assemble
Place the cheese bowls onto individual plates, and spoon the pasta and sauce into each "dish." Serve immediately and make sure to give each diner a knife too!