Starts Sunday, Nov 8Ragù week

You need

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 4 oz pancetta, finely chopped
• 2 medium yellow onions, finely chopped (about 2 cups)
• 2 carrots, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 3 celery ribs, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
• 2 lb ground beef (80/20)
• 1 lb ground pork
• 2 tsp kosher salt, plus more to taste
• 1 cup whole milk
• 1½ cups dry white wine
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 cans (28 oz each) whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand, with their juice
• 2 cups chicken or beef stock
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 parmesan rind (optional)
• ¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg
• Black pepper
• For tonight: 1 lb dried egg tagliatelle, 2 tbsp butter, ½ cup grated parmesan

How to make it

1. Chop the onions, carrots and celery as fine as you have patience for, about ¼ inch. Small pieces melt into the sauce; big ones stay chunky. Chop the pancetta the same size.
2. Heat the oil and butter in your widest heavy pot (at least 7 quarts) over medium heat. When the butter foams, add the pancetta and cook 3 minutes, until the fat starts to run.
3. Add the onions, carrots and celery with a pinch of salt. Cook, stirring every couple of minutes, 12 to 15 minutes, until soft enough to crush against the pot with a spoon and just turning golden at the edges. Don't rush this; it's where the sweetness comes from.
4. Turn the heat to medium-high. Add half the beef and pork, break it up with the spoon, and cook 6 to 7 minutes, until no pink shows and it starts to sizzle instead of steam. Push it to the side, add the rest, and cook the same way. Season with the 2 tsp salt.
5. Pour in the milk and grate in the nutmeg. Simmer, stirring now and then, 8 to 10 minutes, until the milk has disappeared and you see clear fat at the bottom. The milk makes the meat tender.
6. Pour in the wine and simmer 8 to 10 minutes more, until it's gone and the pot smells sweet rather than sharp.
7. Stir in the tomato paste for 1 minute, then the crushed tomatoes and their juice, the stock, the bay leaves and the parmesan rind. Bring to a simmer, then turn the heat down until only a bubble or two breaks the surface at a time.
8. Cook uncovered 2½ to 3 hours, stirring from the bottom every 20 minutes. If it looks dry before it's done, add ½ cup water. It's ready when it's thick enough that a spoon dragged through leaves a trail, it looks glossy, and a thin layer of orange fat sits on top.
9. Take out the bay leaves and the rind. Taste and add salt (usually another 1 to 2 tsp) and plenty of black pepper.
10. Portion the week before you eat: 3 cups for Monday, 2½ cups for Tuesday, 3½ cups for Thursday. Leave the containers open on the counter to cool for up to an hour, then lid them. Monday's and Tuesday's go in the fridge, Thursday's in the freezer.
11. For tonight: boil a big pot of water and salt it well (2 tbsp kosher salt for 5 quarts). Cook the tagliatelle 1 minute less than the package says. Save 1 cup of the water, drain, and toss the pasta in the empty pot over low heat with about 3 cups of ragù, the 2 tbsp butter and a splash of the water for 1 minute, until every strand is coated. Serve with the parmesan.

No pancetta? Use 4 slices of bacon, or leave it out and add 1 more tbsp butter.

Cooked ragù keeps 3 to 4 days in the fridge and 3 months in the freezer, which is why Thursday's goes in the freezer.

You need

• 3 cups ragù (from Sunday)
• 5 cups water
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1¼ cups quick-cooking polenta
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 cup grated parmesan, plus more to serve
• 5 oz baby arugula
• 1 lemon
• 1 tbsp olive oil

How to make it

1. Warm the ragù in a small pot over medium-low heat with 2 tbsp water, covered, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring once or twice, until it bubbles at the edges.
2. Meanwhile bring the 5 cups water and the salt to a boil in a medium pot. Pour in the polenta in a thin, steady stream, whisking the whole time so no lumps form.
3. Turn the heat to low and switch to a wooden spoon. Stir 5 minutes (or as long as the package says), until it's thick and pulls away from the side of the pot. It will spit, so keep stirring.
4. Off the heat, beat in the butter and the parmesan. It should be loose enough to spread in the bowl; if it's stiff, stir in hot water a few tablespoons at a time.
5. Toss the arugula with the olive oil, a squeeze of lemon and a pinch of salt.
6. Spoon the polenta into shallow bowls, make a well in each, and fill it with ragù. More parmesan on top, arugula on the side.

Polenta firms up as it sits. Make it last, and loosen leftovers with hot water.

You need

• 4 large bell peppers (red, yellow or orange)
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• 2½ cups ragù (from Sunday)
• 1½ cups cooked rice (from Sunday)
• 1 cup shredded low-moisture mozzarella
• ¼ cup grated parmesan

How to make it

1. Heat the oven to 400°F. Halve the peppers through the stem, pull out the seeds and the white ribs, and rub them with the oil and salt.
2. Lay them cut side down in a baking dish and roast 15 minutes, until they start to soften and blister. They'll finish in the second bake.
3. Meanwhile stir the ragù and rice together in a bowl. Cold from the fridge is fine.
4. Turn the peppers cut side up and pour ½ cup water into the dish around them. Pack each half with the filling, mounding it a little.
5. Top with the mozzarella and parmesan and bake 20 to 25 minutes, until the cheese is browned in spots and the filling is bubbling when you press it. A knife should slide easily through the pepper.
6. Let them sit 5 minutes before serving; the filling is very hot.

No rice left? A drained can of white beans works in its place.

You need

• 3½ cups ragù (from Sunday, thawed)
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2½ lb Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
• 1 tbsp kosher salt, for the water
• ½ cup whole milk, warmed
• 4 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 egg yolk
• ½ cup grated parmesan
• Salt and black pepper

How to make it

1. Heat the oven to 400°F. Put the potatoes in a pot, cover with cold water by an inch, add the 1 tbsp salt and bring to a boil. Simmer 15 to 18 minutes, until a knife slides through a chunk with no resistance.
2. Drain well and let them steam in the colander 2 minutes so the mash isn't watery. Mash in the pot with the warm milk and butter until smooth, then beat in the egg yolk and half the parmesan. Taste for salt and pepper.
3. Stir the frozen peas into the ragù and spread it in a 2-quart baking dish (8 by 8 or a deep pie dish).
4. Spoon the mash over the top, starting at the edges so it seals in the sauce, then spread it and rough up the surface with a fork. The ridges are what brown. Sprinkle with the rest of the parmesan.
5. Set the dish on a sheet pan and bake 25 minutes, until the sauce bubbles up at the edges. Then broil 2 to 3 minutes, watching, until the top is deep golden in places.
6. Let it rest 5 minutes so it holds together when you serve it.

The egg yolk makes the top brown and crisp. Leave it out if you like and it's still very good.