Category Archives: Pasta

Macaroni and Beans

June 19, 2018 robiulo Leave a comment

Allesandro Castelli-Italian Peasants by a Cottage

Macaroni and Beans

I don’t always do real La Cucina Povera (the cooking of the poor) recipes but this time it’s one of the best – macaroni and beans. What could be a less expensive meal for a family? And the best part about it is that it’s delicious. Every weekday night my mother would start dinner with one of her mother’s recipes, a kind of macaroni and “something,” maybe beans, lentils, cecis (chick peas), broccoli, cauliflower and then she’d serve the main course. These macaroni dishes were terrific but she never considered them “good enough” to serve to guests.

So here’s the family recipe for Macaroni and Beans.

Start a pot of salted water for the macaroni.

Saute the onion slowly over low heat in oil. Don’t brown. Season with salt, black and red pepper. Add the tomato paste, parsley and blend. Add 1 cup of the pasta water and let this continue to simmer on a low heat as the pasta cooks.

When the pasta is almost done add add it to the sauce to finish cooking. Add the beans and some of the pasta water so it has a somewhat soupy consistency. Check for seasoning and serve with a drizzle of olive oil and,if you like, some grated cheese or toasted bread crumbs.

Pasta

Collard Greens Italian Style

May 29, 2018 robiulo 3 Comments

Collard Greens Italian Style

Bridget and I were at a farmer’s market and got some collard greens. We were going to make them Southern style and looked for someone selling smoked ham hocks. Instead we found Italian sausages and changed our plans. Broccoli rabe, sausage and pasta is a traditional Southern Italian dish. So why not mix-up Southern USA and Southern Italy. We replaced the broccoli rape with collards and just because we were being adventurous anyway we added some cannellini beans. Here’s how we did it.

Cleaning collard greens – Cut out and discard the stems. Stack the 2 remaining pieces. Cut the stack into 1 inch strips and wash them.

Put up a pot of water for pasta.

Cut the sausage into 1 inch pieces. Brown in oil in a large pot.

Remove sausage and add garlic and beans. Cook for a few minutes and remove. Deglaze the pot with the wine.

Add the greens to the pot with 1 cup of water. Cook covered on medium high until they wilt, about 10 minutes. Add the almost cooked pasta and ¼ cup of cheese and blend. Return the sausage and beans to the pot. Add more pasta water if necessary to keep it a little soupy and serve.

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Pasta, Seafood, Vegetarian

Pasta with Shrimp and Paprika

March 6, 2018 robiulo Leave a comment

Red Rock Shrimp Credit: D.D.Deheyn and M.C.Allen

Pasta with Shrimp and Paprika

Here’s my take on Nick Stellino‘s pasta with shrimp and paprika.

Put up a pot of salted water to boil for the pasta.

While the pasta is cooking heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the salt and red and black pepper. add the garlic and parsley and cook for a few minutes – don’t burn the garlic.

Increase the heat to medium high and add the shrimp and paprika. Stir together and cook until the shrimp starts to color.

Add the wine and stir and simmer simmering over medium heat, until the wine reduces.

Add the butter and stir until it melts. Drain the almost cooked pasta. add it to the sauce and pour in the stock. Turn off the heat add the optional parsley, stir to combine and serve.

Pasta

Tomato and Anchovy Butter Sauce

February 20, 2018 robiulo Leave a comment

Tomato and Anchovy Butter Sauce

My mother would have let the family starve before she’d combine butter instead of olive oil with tomatoes for pasta sauce. Tomato and Anchovy Butter Sauce? I try to keep an open mind. Here’s my cover of Bon Appetit’s recipe and it’s not bad at all.

Bring a pot of salted water to boil for the pasta.

Lightly cook the anchovies and garlic in the melted butter until the anchovies dissolve. Add the tomatoes and cook until they soften.

When the pasta is almost done add it to the sauce to finish cooking. Add the chopped herbs and mix just before serving.

Pasta, Vegetarian

Baked Pasta with Peas

February 2, 2018 robiulo 2 Comments

Baked Pasta with Peas

Baked pasta is typically made with red sauce. Baked pasta with peas is white and green with no mozzarella.

Butter 9” spring loaded pan and dust with Parmesan.

Sauce – Melt ½ stick of butter in a pot and add ¼ cup of flour and whisk until blended. Slowly whisk in quart of milk and bring to a simmer. Cook until thickened – whisk occasionally. Remove from heat and whisk in 1 cup Fontina and 1 cup Parmesan. Add egg, whisk and taste for seasoning. Cover & keep warm.

Place rack in upper 1/3 of 375^ooven.

Put ½ of pasta mix into 9“pan and dot with ½ of the ricotta. Put the rest of the pasta in the pan and dot with remaining ricotta and sprinkle with ¼ cup of Parmesan.

Bake for 30 min. then sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup of Parmesan and bake for another 10 minutes. Place under broiler, watching closely, for a minute or so to brown top.

Let it rest for 30 minutes before removing from pan so cheese can harden. Cut into wedges and sprinkle with parsley and mint.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

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Pasta

Short Ribs and Diced Tomato Sauce

January 26, 2018 robiulo Leave a comment

(short ribs or flanken are beef ribs cut across the bone)

Short Ribs and Diced Tomato Sauce

This sauce has an intense flavor for two reasons – first, the ribs with their collagen and marrow and second, the fond created by the meat and then the onions and tomatoes. Le fond is French for the caramelized bits of food that stick to the bottom of the pan. There’s even a very good restaurant by the name Le Fond. Deglazing removes the fond and reincorporates its flavors back into the sauce.

Bring the ribs to room temperature and cut into pieces. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper and brown in olive oil. Remove and set aside A fond should be beginning to form.

Add chopped onion to pan and sauté on low-medium heat. Add tomato paste and stir and coat the onions. Cook until softened and translucent.

Add diced tomatoes and simmer uncovered on medium until almost dry (more fond is formed). Pour in the wine and deglaze the pan.

That’s not burnt – it’s fond

Add enough pasta water to thin the sauce. Return the meat, add the bay leaf and simmer on low for fifteen minutes.

after deglazing with wine after thinning with pasta water

Cook the pasta until almost done, drain and add it to the sauce to finish cooking. Serve with grated Parmigiana.

Short Ribs and Diced Tomato Sauce

Click here for updated GALLERY II

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Pasta, Vegetarian

Pasta Inchiummata

January 12, 2018 robiulo Leave a comment

Pasta Inchiummata (pasta with pine nuts, currants and tomatoes)

With currants, nuts and mint pasta inchiummata might seem like dessert but it’s very hardy Sicilian main course. It doesn’t take long to make and there’s no simmering.

Soak the currants in 2 cups of water for 20 minutes. Drain and discard the water; set the currants aside. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the oil and red pepper. Stir in the garlic, pine nuts and currants. Cook for 3 minutes.

garlic, pine nuts, currants

Add the diced tomatoes, basil, parsley, mint, salt and pepper, and then cook for 3 more minutes.

tomatoes, basil, parsley, mint

Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Cook until the pasta is coated with the sauce, about 2 to 3 minutes. Check for seasoning and add salt and black pepper. Toss the pasta in the pan with the bread crumbs and serve.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

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Pasta, Vegetarian

Pasta Rosso con Broccoli

January 5, 2018 robiulo Leave a comment

Pasta Rosso con Broccoli (Red Wine Pasta with Broccoli)

This recipe is a bit complicated, takes some time and can be expensive depending on the wine you use but it’s very pretty, tastes great and is worth the trouble. It’s also very spicy but it’s up to you how far you want to go with the pepperoncini. (if you don’t have whole dried pepperoncini, use dried red pepper flakes)

The pasta –

¼ cup olive oil
2 thinly sliced garlic cloves
1 crumbled dried pepperoncini (stem, seeds and core removed)
3 or 4 anchovies
1 bottle red wine (a moderately priced Chianti would work)
1 tsp salt
1 lb short pasta

In one pot heat oil, garlic, pepperoncini and anchovies. Add 3 cups of wine and salt.
In another pot add pasta to salted boiling water and cook for 2 minutes after it starts to boil again. Drain and add to pot with wine and bring to boil. Keep stirring until wine is absorbed and the pasta turns red– about 8-10 minutes. Add more wine as needed.

The pepperoncini –

¼ cup olive oil
3 thinly sliced garlic cloves
5 or 6 crumbled dried pepperoncini (stem, seeds and core removed)
1 tsp salt

Heat the oil, add the garlic and pepperoncini. Keep the heat low and don’t burn it.
When the peppers and garlic darken a little put everything, including the oil in a food processor (or mortar and pestle) with a teaspoon of salt and grind until it’s a paste.
Put it back in the pan and heat until it dries.

The broccoli –

1 head of broccoli cut into florets
¼ olive oil
1 clove thinly sliced garlic

Boil broccoli for about 5 minutes. Drain and toss over medium heat with garlic and oil.
Turn off the heat, add half of the pepperoncini paste and stir. If it’s too dry add more oil.

Put it all together –

Pour the broccoli and pepperoncini mixture over the pasta and add a little of the pasta cooking water to make it moist.
Serve with extra pepperoncini paste.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

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Pasta, Vegetarian

Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes and Colatura di Alici

November 17, 2017 robiulo Leave a comment

Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes and Colatura di Alici

This is a quick sauce and should be ready in about the time it takes to make the pasta. Don’t overcook it and keep the fresh taste of the tomatoes. Simple ingredients and yet the result is a complex flavor. Colatura di Alici is an Italian fish sauce similar to the ancient Roman and Greek garum.

(you can buy colatura di alici on-line)

Put a pot of salted water on the stove to cook the pasta.

Lightly toast the breadcrumbs in oil a pan and set aside.

Add more oil to the pan and cook the anchovies until they dissolve. Add the garlic and cook until very lightly golden. Add the chilli and cook briefly. Then add cherry tomatoes and capers.

When the pasta is almost done move it from the pot to the pan, adding a bit of the pasta water to the sauce. Mix the pasta with the sauce adding water from the pot as necessary.

When almost done, add the colatura di alici, breadcrumbs, and chopped parsley and blend. Taste for seasoning. Anchovies and colature di alici can be salty and you may not need any more salt. No cheese on this one.

If you have lots of cherry or grape tomatoes to cut in half, here’s a simple and quick way to do it instead of cutting them one at a time.

(sorry about the siren in the background – we live in New York City and didn’t notice)

Click here for updated GALLERY II

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Macaroni and Beans

Collard Greens Italian Style

Put up a pot of water for pasta.

Cut the sausage into 1 inch pieces. Brown in oil in a large pot.

Remove sausage and add garlic and beans. Cook for a few minutes and remove. Deglaze the pot with the wine.

Add the greens to the pot with 1 cup of water. Cook covered on medium high until they wilt, about 10 minutes. Add the almost cooked pasta and ¼ cup of cheese and blend. Return the sausage and beans to the pot. Add more pasta water if necessary to keep it a little soupy and serve.

Shrimp and Breadcrumb Sauce

Pasta with Shrimp and Paprika

Here’s my take on Nick Stellino‘s pasta with shrimp and paprika.

Tomato and Anchovy Butter Sauce

My mother would have let the family starve before she’d combine butter instead of olive oil with tomatoes for pasta sauce. Tomato and Anchovy Butter Sauce? I try to keep an open mind. Here’s my cover of Bon Appetit’s recipe and it’s not bad at all.

Bring a pot of salted water to boil for the pasta.

Lightly cook the anchovies and garlic in the melted butter until the anchovies dissolve. Add the tomatoes and cook until they soften.

When the pasta is almost done add it to the sauce to finish cooking. Add the chopped herbs and mix just before serving.

Baked Pasta with Peas

Butter 9” spring loaded pan and dust with Parmesan.

Place rack in upper 1/3 of 375o oven.

Put ½ of pasta mix into 9“pan and dot with ½ of the ricotta. Put the rest of the pasta in the pan and dot with remaining ricotta and sprinkle with ¼ cup of Parmesan.

Bake for 30 min. then sprinkle with remaining ¼ cup of Parmesan and bake for another 10 minutes. Place under broiler, watching closely, for a minute or so to brown top.

Let it rest for 30 minutes before removing from pan so cheese can harden. Cut into wedges and sprinkle with parsley and mint.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

Short Ribs and Diced Tomato Sauce

Bring the ribs to room temperature and cut into pieces. Sprinkle with salt and black pepper and brown in olive oil. Remove and set aside A fond should be beginning to form.

Add chopped onion to pan and sauté on low-medium heat. Add tomato paste and stir and coat the onions. Cook until softened and translucent.

Add diced tomatoes and simmer uncovered on medium until almost dry (more fond is formed). Pour in the wine and deglaze the pan.

Add enough pasta water to thin the sauce. Return the meat, add the bay leaf and simmer on low for fifteen minutes.

Cook the pasta until almost done, drain and add it to the sauce to finish cooking. Serve with grated Parmigiana.

Short Ribs and Diced Tomato Sauce

Click here for updated GALLERY II

Pasta Inchiummata (pasta with pine nuts, currants and tomatoes)

With currants, nuts and mint pasta inchiummata might seem like dessert but it’s very hardy Sicilian main course. It doesn’t take long to make and there’s no simmering.

Soak the currants in 2 cups of water for 20 minutes. Drain and discard the water; set the currants aside. In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the oil and red pepper. Stir in the garlic, pine nuts and currants. Cook for 3 minutes.

Add the diced tomatoes, basil, parsley, mint, salt and pepper, and then cook for 3 more minutes.

Add the cooked pasta to the sauce. Cook until the pasta is coated with the sauce, about 2 to 3 minutes. Check for seasoning and add salt and black pepper. Toss the pasta in the pan with the bread crumbs and serve.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

Pasta Rosso con Broccoli (Red Wine Pasta with Broccoli)

The pasta –

¼ cup olive oil

2 thinly sliced garlic cloves

1 crumbled dried pepperoncini (stem, seeds and core removed)

3 or 4 anchovies

1 bottle red wine (a moderately priced Chianti would work)

1 tsp salt

1 lb short pasta

In one pot heat oil, garlic, pepperoncini and anchovies. Add 3 cups of wine and salt.

In another pot add pasta to salted boiling water and cook for 2 minutes after it starts to boil again. Drain and add to pot with wine and bring to boil. Keep stirring until wine is absorbed and the pasta turns red– about 8-10 minutes. Add more wine as needed.

The pepperoncini –

¼ cup olive oil

3 thinly sliced garlic cloves

5 or 6 crumbled dried pepperoncini (stem, seeds and core removed)

1 tsp salt

Heat the oil, add the garlic and pepperoncini. Keep the heat low and don’t burn it.

When the peppers and garlic darken a little put everything, including the oil in a food processor (or mortar and pestle) with a teaspoon of salt and grind until it’s a paste.

Put it back in the pan and heat until it dries.

The broccoli –

1 head of broccoli cut into florets

¼ olive oil

1 clove thinly sliced garlic

Boil broccoli for about 5 minutes. Drain and toss over medium heat with garlic and oil.

Turn off the heat, add half of the pepperoncini paste and stir. If it’s too dry add more oil.

Put it all together –

Pour the broccoli and pepperoncini mixture over the pasta and add a little of the pasta cooking water to make it moist.

Serve with extra pepperoncini paste.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

Pasta with Cherry Tomatoes and Colatura di Alici

This is a quick sauce and should be ready in about the time it takes to make the pasta. Don’t overcook it and keep the fresh taste of the tomatoes. Simple ingredients and yet the result is a complex flavor. Colatura di Alici is an Italian fish sauce similar to the ancient Roman and Greek garum.

Put a pot of salted water on the stove to cook the pasta.

Lightly toast the breadcrumbs in oil a pan and set aside.

Add more oil to the pan and cook the anchovies until they dissolve. Add the garlic and cook until very lightly golden. Add the chilli and cook briefly. Then add cherry tomatoes and capers.

When the pasta is almost done move it from the pot to the pan, adding a bit of the pasta water to the sauce. Mix the pasta with the sauce adding water from the pot as necessary.

When almost done, add the colatura di alici, breadcrumbs, and chopped parsley and blend. Taste for seasoning. Anchovies and colature di alici can be salty and you may not need any more salt. No cheese on this one.

If you have lots of cherry or grape tomatoes to cut in half, here’s a simple and quick way to do it instead of cutting them one at a time.

Click here for updated GALLERY II

Reveries and Recipes

Place rack in upper 1/3 of 375^ooven.