lunaticsinge.com - Italian Cuisine Pastas, Polentas, & Risottos

Spaghettini with Oil & Garlic - (serves 6)

Ingredients:

Salt for pasta pot & to taste

1 lb. Spaghettini or vermicelli

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

10 cloves garlic, peeled & sliced

1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes, or more to taste

1/2 cup Italian parsley, chopped

1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano (optional)

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Stir the spaghettini into the boiling water. Return to a boil, stirring frequently, and cook, semi-covered, until the pasta is tender, but still very firm, about 6 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, and cook, shaking the skillet, until pale golden, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, and add the crushed hot red pepper. Ladle 1 1/2 cups of the pasta-cooking water into the sauce; then add the parsley, the remaining olive oil, and salt to taste, and bring to a boil.

3. Fish out the pasta with a large wire skimmer and drop it directly into the sauce in the skillet. Bring the sauce and pasta to a simmer, tossing to coat pasta with sauce. Cook about 1 minute. Remove the pot from the heat, and toss in the grated cheese, if using. Check the seasoning, adding salt and crushed red pepper if necessary. Serve immediately in warm bowls.

Spaghetti and Meatballs - (serves 6)

Sauce Ingredients:

2 (35 oz.) cans Italian plum tomatoes, with their liquid

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium onion chopped

1 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

2 to 3 bay leaves

Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Meatball Ingredients:

1/2 lb. ground pork

1/2 lb. ground beef

1 cup fine dry breadcrumbs

1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1/4 cup Italian parsley, chopped

2 clove garlic, peeled & finely chopped

1 large egg

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

All-purpose flour, for dredging

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1 lb spaghetti

1. Pass the tomatoes and their liquid through a food mill fitted with the fine disc, or crush by hand. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil i a 4 to 5 quart pot over medium heat. Stir in the onion, and cook stirring, until wilted, about 4 minutes. Pour in the tomatoes, add the crushed red pepper and bay leaves, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat so the sauce is at a lively simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.

2. Crumble the pork and beef into a mixing bowl. Sprinkle the breadcrumbs, 1/3 cup grated cheese, the parsley, and garlic over the meat. Beat the egg with salt and pepper in a small bowl until blended, then pour over the meat mixture. Mix the ingredients with clean hands just until evenly blended, and shape the meat mixture into 1 1/2 inch balls. Dredge the meatballs in the flour until lightly, but evenly coated.

3. Heat 1/4 cup olive oil and the vegetable oil in a large, heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Slip as many meatballs into the skillet as will fit without crowding. Fry, turning as necessary, until golden brown on all sides, about 6 minutes. Adjust the heat as the meatballs cook to prevent them from over-browning.

4. Remove the meatballs, and repeat if necessary with the remaining meatballs. Add the browned meatballs to the tomato sauce, and cook, stirring gently with a wooden spoon, until no trace of pink remains at the center of the meatballs, about 30 minutes.

5. Bring 6 quarts of salted water to a boil in an 8-quart pot over high heat. Stir the spaghetti into the boiling water. Return to a oil, stirring frequently. Cook the pasta, semi-covered, stirring occasionally, until done, about 8 minutes. Drain the pasta, and return it to the empty pot. Spoon in 2 cups of the tomato sauce, tossing well until the pasta is coated with sauce. Remove from the heat, and toss in the remaining 2/3 cup grated cheese. Check the seasoning, and add salt and pepper if needed.

6. Serve the pasta in warm bowls or piled high on a large war platter. Spoon a little more of the sauce over the pasta, and pass the remaining sauce separately. Pass the meatballs family-style in a bowl, or top the bowls or platter of spaghetti with them.

Vermicelli with Red Clam Sauce - (serves 6)

Ingredients:

3 1/2 lbs littleneck clams

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, to taste, plus more for the past pot

10 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more as needed

10 cloves garlic, peeled & sliced

1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

1 cup canned plum tomatoes, seeded & sliced in thin strips

4 tablespoons Italian parsley, chopped

1 lb. vermicelli

1. Put the clams in a single layer on a tray or platter, and freeze them for about 1/2 hour (they will be easier to open).

2. Working over a bowl to catch every drop of clam liquid, open the clams with shucking knife, cut the meat free from both half-shells, and let the meat and liquid fall into the bowl. Reserve 8 of the smaller clams. Collect the clam meat from the bowl and strain the juice through a sieve set over a small bowl or measuring cup. Let the sediment in the clam juice settle, then pour off the clean clam juice from the top into a clean bowl, discarding the sediments. Chop the clams roughly into large pieces.

3. Before starting the sauce, bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta - 4 quarts water with 1 tablespoon salt.

4. Pour 1/2 cup of the olive oil into a large skillet, and set over medium-high heat. Scatter in the sliced garlic and the reserved whole clams, heat to sizzling, and sprinkle the hot red pepper flakes over it. Cook another minute, add the sliced tomatoes and the reserved clam liquid, stir, and bring to a boil. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, and stir in the chopped clams. Return to a boil, and cook at a bubbling simmer for 3 to 4 minutes. If the clams release a frothy scum, scoop it off the surface and discard.

5. When the sauce has achieved a nice density, just enough to coat a spoon lightly, lower the heat and season with salt to taste. Stir in the parsley and another 2 tablespoons of olive oil.

6. When you add the clam juice, drop the vermicelli in the boiling water. Cook briefly, 2 to 4 minutes, then lift the pasta from the pot, using a spider or tongs; It will still be quiet al dente. Let it drain briefly, and drop it into the simmering sauce.

7. Toss the vermicelli in the sauce for a couple of minutes, until the pasta is cooked through and dressed with the sauce. Serve immediately.

Spaghetti with Calamari, Scallops, & Shrimp - (serves 6)

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for the pasta pot

8 oz. medium calamari, cleaned

8 oz. dry sea scallops

1 lb. large shrimp

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tablespoons for finishing the pasta

6 cloves garlic, peeled & sliced

4 cups cherry tomatoes, halved or 2 cups canned Italian plum tomatoes crushed by hand

1/4 teaspoon red hot pepper flakes, or to taste

1 lb. spaghetti

1/4 cup fresh basil leaves

1 tablespoon Italian parsley, chopped

1. Fill a large pot with salted water (at 6-quarts water, with 1 tablespoon salt), and heat to a boil.

2. To prepare the seafood: cut the calamari bodies, including the tentacles, into 1/2 inch segments. Pull off the side muscle from the scallops, if present, and discard. Remove the shells, tails, and digestive veins from the shrimp; rinse and pat dry.

3. Heat the olive oil in a skillet set over medium-high heat. Scatter in the sliced garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to sizzle and color, about 1 to 2 minutes. Dump in the tomatoes, sprinkle on the teaspoon salt and the red hot pepper flakes, and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring and tossing the tomatoes, until they are softened and sizzling in their juices, but still intact.

4. Now start cooking the pasta first and the seafood right after, so they are ready at the same time.

5. Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water, stir, and return the water to a boil. As it cooks, scatter the calamari rings and cut tentacles in the pan with the tomatoes, and get them sizzling over medium-high heat. Let the pieces cook for a minute or two, then toss in the scallops, and spread them out to heat and start sizzling quickly.

6. After they've cooked for a couple of minutes, toss in the shrimp, ladle in a cup of boiling pasta water, stir in the seafood and sauce together, bring to a steady simmer, and cook just until the shrimp turn pink and begin to curl, about 3 minutes.

7. As soon as the spaghetti is barely al dente, lift it from the pot, drain briefly, and drop in the skillet. Toss the pasta and the simmering sauce together for a minute or two, until the spaghetti is nicely coated with sauce and perfectly al dente, and the seafood is distributed throughout the pasta. Turn off the heat, sprinkle on the basil and parsley, and drizzle on another 2 tablespoons olive oil.

8. Toss well, heap the spaghetti into warm bowls, giving each portion plenty of seafood, and serve immediately.

Basic Potato Gnocchi - (serves 6)

Ingredients:

6 large Idaho or russet potatoes

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon salt

Dash of ground white pepper

2 eggs, beaten

4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese for serving (optional)

1. Boil the potatoes in their skins for about 40 minutes, until easily pierced with a skewer. When cool enough to handle, peel and rice the potatoes, and set them aside to cool completely, spreading them loosely to expose as much surface as possible to the air.

2. Bring 6-quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of the salt to a boil in a large pot. On a cool, work surface, gather the cold potatoes into a mound, forming a well in the center. Stir the remaining teaspoon salt and the white pepper into the beaten eggs, and pour the mixture into the well. Work the potatoes and eggs together with both hands, gradually adding 3 cups of the flour and scraping the dough up from the work surface with a knife as often as necessary. (Incorporation of the ingredients should take no longer than 10 minutes - the longer you work it, the more flour it will require and the heavier it will become.)

3. Dust the dough, your hands, and the work surface lightly with flour and cut the dough into 6 equal parts. (Continue to dust as long as the dough feels sticky.) Using both hands roll each piece of dough into a rope 1/2 inch thick, then slice the ropes at 1/2 inch intervals. Indent each dumpling with a thumb, or use the tines of a fork to produce a ribbed effect. (This helps the sauce to stick to the gnocchi.)

4. Drop the gnocchi into boiling water a few at a time, stirring gently and continuously with a wooden spoon, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until they float up to the surface. Remove the gnocchi from the water with a slotted spoon or skimmer, transfer them to a war, platter, and add a little sauce of your choice. Add ground white pepper to taste and, if appropriate, grated cheese, and serve immediately.

NOTE: Gnocchi can be delicious with just butter and Parmigiano-Reggiano