Red Wine and Chocolate Cream Sauce

The title of this blog post has already created it’s first impression in your mind. You either thought “that’s just weird” or “yum!” Either way, you’re intrigued. I’ll clear up one assumption off the bat – it’s not sweet.

When I saw this blog post pop up on my WordPress Reader last year it was Carlynn’s photography that had me sold. What caught my attention was her use of chocoalte pasta! I didn’t have, couldn’t find, and wasn’t about to make chocolate linguini so I used the boring normal stuff.

I made this for Valentine’s Day last year and while we were all a touch skeptical we all found we really enjoyed it! But a uninamous vote agreed that it needed some protein. A cocoa or coffee rubbed steak would accompany this pasta pretty nicely.

While I typically halve recipes that claim to serve 6 I made this one as is. We had a lot of pasta leftover. Good thing it reheated well! If you opt to serve this dish as a side then I’d highly suggest halving it – unless you’re feeding an army.

Red Wine and Chocolate Cream Sauce

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter
1 onion, diced
1/2 C red wine
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 qt beef broth
1 1/2 C heavy cream
1/2 C marscapone cheese
2 oz dark chocolate, chopped
1/2 C Cacao Nibs
1 lb uncooked pasta

Steps:

In a large pot over medium-high heat melt butter. Saute onions until translucent, approximately 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Reserve some if the cooking liquid, if needed.
Deglaze the pan with the red wine and the balsamic vinegar. Simmer until thick. Add the beef broth and simmer until reduced by half, 15-20 minutes.
Whisk in the cream. Melt in the marscapone cheese. Remove from heat and melt in the chocolate. Stir in the cacao nibs. Season to taste with S+P.
Add as much of the sauce sauce to the cooked pasta as desired. Use the reserved pasta water if needed.

*This recipe is adapted from Carlynn at http://jjbegonia.com/2014/02/03/pasta-with-chocolate-and-red-wine-cream-sauce/*