Pasta alla Carbonara

I have decided to post this recipe, which is a very basic one, as part of my efforts to clarify what is "authentic" Italian and what is not. This is how it is done in Italy. No peas. No large amounts of cream. And no, the eggs are not properly "cooked". I love Carbonara, it's a go to when you are starving and want a rich dish but don't have much left in the fridge. The only problem is the pancetta. I have tried to find one here in the states that was exactly as the one in Italy. The closest I have come is some diced pancetta I found at the Fresh Market, I think the brand was Fiorucci, but it still didn't taste the same. Anyway, if you want you can also substitute pancetta for some thick cut bacon, which actually might taste even better in the end, or some German Prosciutto but be careful with that because sometimes it can be a little too salty.

Ingredients for 4 people

4 eggs (3 egg yolks + 1 whole egg)
1/2 lb of diced pancetta
1/2 pound of grated parmesan
salt
pepper
1 lb of thick spaghetti

Preparation

- In a pan cook the diced pancetta over medium heat without adding any oil. Cook until the fat is transparent and the pancetta is slightly crispy and remove from the heat.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and add 1/4 cup of salt to it.
- In a large bowl toss the eggs and the parmesan cheese, make sure the cheese is enough so that the mixture becomes very thick. Add the pancetta.
- Cook the pasta as directed.
- Drain the pasta and IMMEDIATELY add to the egg mixture, the heat from the pasta will help "cook" the egg. Toss vigorously and serve with black pepper on top.

Pasta with Smoked Salmon in Creamy Vodka Sauce

This pasta will look like something very fancy but it really doesn't take much time or skill to make, actually I think it's pretty foolproof. The ingredients might be a little expensive (especially the smoked salmon) so it's not something I do everyday, but it is a nice idea if you are entertaining guests and want to impress them with something easy to cook.

Ingredients for 2 people

1/2 lb of bowtie/farfalle pasta
1 package of smoked salmon ( usually they are between 4-6 oz)
1 small onion
olive oil
1/3 cup of vodka
1/2 cup of heavy cream
1 teaspoon of tomato paste

Preparation

- Finely dice the onion
- Place a 2 quarts pot of water on the stove on medium
- In a frying pan pour approximately 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil and cook the onion in it on medium until the onion is soft and transparent. Avoid burning the onion by keeping the fire on medium low. If it's still getting brown too quickly you can add a dash of white wine or even some water.
- Cut the salmon in little bits of about half an inch.
- Add the salmon to the onion and stir it allowing it to caramelize a little.
- Add the vodka and cook until the salmon is caramelized and the vodka has mostly evaporated.
- Add the cream and the tomato paste. The tomato paste doesn't add much in terms of flavor but makes the sauce pink which looks prettier with the pink salmon.
- Cook for a few minutes on medium low allowing the cream to thicken. Once the cream is thick enough turn off.
- When the water is boiling add about 1/2 cup of salt then cook the pasta as directed.
- Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet. You can turn the stove back on for a few minutes to help the sauce really stick to the pasta.

Ragu' alla Bolognese - Authentic Italian Meat Sauce

This is another one of those classic recipes that are subject to endless variations. Every household has their secret for the perfect meat sauce, and everyone prefers their own version over any other. Even I have at least two different ways of doing it: one is stronger and involves a lot of red wine, and one is milder and it includes milk. I have recently discovered that the official recipe includes milk too, so I am publishing this one. The official recipe though is made with different kinds of meat that are not easily available in the States and it takes a lot longer to make. As usual I chose a simpler version that you can do any day. It is not a quick recipe, you still have to let the sauce simmer for at least one hour, but once you started you just have to let it cook, so it is not a very elaborate one and I think anyone can easily replicate it at home. It is not a light or healthy recipe either. If you want a lighter version try getting a cut of meat with less fat and substitute the sausage with ground pork. If you decide to do so add more pepper and paprika,as you will lose a lot of the flavor.

Ingredients

1 lb. of ground beef ( 85/15)
2-3 Sweet Italian Sausages
1 medium yellow onion
2 medium carrots
2 medium celery ribs
1 large can of tomato puree (1lb 12oz)
1 cup of milk
1 clove (optional)
1 bay leaf (optional)
paprika (optional)
salt
pepper (optional)
olive oil

PREPARATION

Finely chop the vegetables and put them in a large pot with enough olive oil to coat them. Cook over medium heat until the vegetables are soft and the onion is translucent.

Take the casing off the sausages and add the meat to the vegetables. Stir until it's browned.
Add the ground beef to the pot and stir until it's browned.

Add the tomato puree and bring to a simmer.

Add the clove, the bay leaf, paprika and pepper. ( I marked them as optional just because you shouldn't feel like you can't do this sauce without them, but it definitely tastes better with them!)

Add salt and partially cover with the lid. Let simmer stirring every once in a while for at least 1 hour.The goal is to have the sauce and the meat really come together, while the tomato sauce itself will reduce in size.

Once you think the sauce is ready, add the cup of milk and stir. Cook for another 5 minutes and turn off.

For a perfect dish serve over fettuccine, sprinkled with freshly grated Parmesan cheese or use it to make the perfect Lasagna.

Pasta with Broccoli Rabe

This recipe is easy, tasty and a perfect example of how traditional Italian food can be healthy too: you have your greens, your complex carbs ( just watch how much pasta you throw in!), your fish oil and the spices to keep you satisfied. It is traditionally made in the Apulia region ( think the heel of the boot) and it is made with Orecchiette pasta, literally "little ears". If you can't find Orecchiette, use another kind of short pasta, like Pipette from Barilla.

INGREDIENTS

2 Bunches of broccoli rabe

2 cups of short pasta

4 cloves of garlic

2 tablespoons of olive oil

2 anchovies or 1 teaspoon of anchovy paste

2 tablespoons of plain bread crumbs

red pepper flakes 

salt

Pecorino Romano

PREPARATION

Cut away all the stems from the broccoli rabe then cut the leaves in 1 inch thick strips.

In a large pot of boiling water throw in a fistful of salt. 

Once the water boils again throw in the pasta and the broccoli rabe.

In the meantime in a skillet warm up the oil and throw in the chopped garlic, the anchovies or the anchovy paste and the red pepper flakes. Cook until the garlic is cooked but not burnt.

Add the breadcrumbs and cook until browned.

Once the pasta is "al dente" drain the pasta and the broccoli.

Throw the pasta and broccoli in the skillet with the oil-garlic mixture and cook with the fire on high for 2 minutes or until the pasta is thoroughly coated with green.

Serve with grated Pecorino to taste.

Pasta with Tuna

This is a dish I could make with my eyes closed. It is a sort of comfort food in my family, and it is made with ingredients that are always available in an Italian pantry, so you could make it when there is "nothing" in the fridge. The same maybe is not true of an American pantry, since anchovies have a very bad reputation around here and I don't think many people has even ever tasted capers. You can use any kind of canned tuna, or, if you want to have an Italian experience, go to an Italian supermarket and find Mediterranean Tuna in a jar, like Callipo, but at about 10$ a can I don't know that I would recommend it for such a simple recipe. As for the tomato sauce, I like the sauce that comes in a glass bottle, when I find it, and that is just tomatoes, no onions, no herbs, no other aromas. Otherwise I just buy a tomato puree, like Defratelli or any other regular brand. I did not indicate the exact amount of tomato sauce because it depends on your taste: some people like it more "white" others like it swimming in sauce, I am for something in between. As for the pasta, the rule in Italy is about 3.5 oz per person. I like using spaghetti grossi from Barilla, which is a kind of spaghetti that are slightly thicker than the average, but of course any spaghetti would work.

INGREDIENTS

(for 4 people)

14 oz of Tuna packed in water

Tomato Puree

1 big head of garlic

2 anchovies

2 teaspoons of small capers

1 tablespoon of fresh Italian parsley

salt

red pepper flakes (optional)

1/2 teaspoon of paprika 

about 1 lb of spaghetti grossi

1 tablespoon extravirgin olive oil

PREPARATION

Fill a large pot with water and start boiling.

While the water is warming up, in a medium skillet heat up the olive oil and the peeled garlic clove.

Add the anchovies and smash them with a wooden spoon while cooking so that a sort of anchovy paste is created.

Add the drained tuna and keep stirring with the spoon for about 3 minutes.

Add the tomato sauce, the paprika, the red pepper flakes ( to taste) and a pinch of salt.

Bring to boil then reduce the heat to medium and let simmer until the sauce is thickened ( about 10 minutes, it depends on the amount of sauce you added).

Add the capers, stir to warm up about 1 minute. Turn off the heat. Discard the garlic clove.

When the water is boiling add a fistful ( yes a fistful is the right technical italian measurement for salt when it comes to pasta!) of salt then stir and wait for the water to boil again.

Add the pasta and cook until al dente (follow instructions on the package).

Drain the pasta, shake the excess water away then immediately toss the pasta in the sauce.

Turn the heat back on and toss the pasta for about 3 minutes.

Add the parsley and toss the pasta, reserving some parsley as a garnish.

DO NOT, I REPEAT, DO NOT SERVE WITH PARMESAN CHEESE.

IN ITALY IT IS CONSIDERED A CAPITAL OFFENSE.

Ravioli di Spinaci e Ricotta - Spinach and Ricotta Ravioli

My friend Ruth asked me for a recipe for homemade ravioli. To be honest I haven't tried making my own ravioli yet. I have tried making homemade pasta before and my problem usually is that it turns out too thick, which can be fine if you are making fettuccine to be served on a hearty meat sauce, but it's not acceptable when it comes to ravioli or tortellini. So, dear Ruth, here is a recipe that I took from a wonderful Italian book of traditional recipes:  "Ricette di Osterie d'Italia" by Slow Food, a collection of 600 of the best pasta recipes taken from the best Italian Osterie. Be warned though: you will need to work your dough pretty hard and well and get it to be as thin as possible. Italian grandmas do it without a sweat, but then again if you were ever slapped by an Italian grandma you would understand why! You could also resort to a pasta machine, but that just wouldn't be as cool, so if you do, just don't tell anyone! I have translated the recipe and tried to make it look as simple as possible. For the sake of my American blog readers I have also converted the quantities in cups and tablespoons, according to the conversion chart I found here, hopefully it is accurate!
This recipe comes from the Abruzzo region ( in central Italy, south-east of Lazio, which is the Rome region) where this ravioli are prepared with a kind of wild spinach called "orapi", but they can be made with regular spinach. The quality of the ricotta is very important, so try to find the freshest ricotta possible as well as a good piece of fresh Parmesan cheese (grate it yourself, it will taste so much better!)

INGREDIENTS
(for 4 people)

Dough:
3 and 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
4 eggs
1 tablespoon of extravirgin olive oil
salt

Filling:
2 lbs of spinach
2 eggs
1 and 1/2 cups of Ricotta
1 tablespoon of freshly grated Parmesan Cheese
salt
pepper
nutmeg

Sauce:
butter
sage
Parmesan Cheese
salt

PREPARATION

Mix the ingredients for the dough and work the dough on a lightly floured surface for about 15 minutes.
Let the dough rest for 30 minutes.
With a rolling pin, roll the dough in a thin layer ( not too thin or it will break while cooking but not too thick or it won't taste good!) then divide it in two layers and let rest.

Wash and cook the spinach in boiling water with a pinch of salt for a few minutes, until completely wilted.
Drain the spinach, run under cold water and then squeeze well to let all the excess water out.
Put the spinach in a food processor or cut very finely.
In a medium bowl, mix the spinach with the eggs, the ricotta, the parmesan cheese and the nutmeg ( to taste) then season with salt and pepper.

Form little balls of filling and space them evenly on one of the dough layers.
Put the second layer on top of the first one and press with your fingers in between the layers to make them adhere well.
Cut the ravioli squares with a knife, or, better, with a ravioli cutter ( it looks a little like a pizza cutter but with irregular edges).

Cook the ravioli in boiling salted water until done then season with melted butter, fresh sage leaves and salt. Serve with freshly grated Parmesan cheese on top.

Pasta Primavera : with Tomato Medley and Fresh Onions

Saturday at the Woodstock Farmers' market I bought this lovely box of mixed tomatoes from an organic vendor. The sign said there were up to 10 different kind of tomatoes, I am pretty sure I recognized 5 different kinds, I have no idea of their names but I have to say the orange ones tasted the best as they were very juicy and sweet. The same vendor also had a very perfumed basil and we had fresh onions from our weekly CSA box, so I decided to make "Pasta Primavera" , a recipe that to me tastes a lot like home. Very simple yet so flavorful if the ingredients are just right.

Pasta Primavera

Ingredients ( for 2 people)

• 1 small box of Fresh, local, naturally ripened cherry tomatoes
• 1 bunch of fresh onions
• 5-6 leaves of fresh basil
• 200 gr. of linguine
• Olive oil
• Parmesan Cheese

Instructions

1. Cut the onions discarding the green part
2. Cut the tomatoes in half or in quarters depending on the size of the tomatoes
3. Place everything in a medium pan with olive oil and cook on medium fire until the tomatoes are soft but not completely melted. Add salt to taste.Turn off and add the basil finely cut.
4. In a pot of boiling salt water, cook the linguine until "al dente"
5. Drain the linguine and add them to the pan, turn on the fire and keep stirring the linguine in the sauce while adding some Parmesan cheese. The key is to let the gluten of the pasta and the cheese "tie together" the sauce.
6. Serve with another spoon of freshly grated Parmesan cheese.