pasta · pasta · pasta
LUMACHE WITH ZUCCHINI & CLAMS
serves 4
Lumache means “snails” so we dice the zucchini to slip nicely inside their shells. Let the zucs cook until quite soft so they meld into the briny sauce.
40 littleneck or Manila clams (about 2 pounds)
Salt
½ cup dry white wine
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 medium onion, chopped
2 medium zucchini, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
½ pound lumache or other shellshaped pasta
½ cup finely grated parmigianoreggiano
A handful of little basil leaves
Wash the clams in big bowls of cold salted water, gently lifting them from one bowl to the other, changing and swishing the water and repeating the process until it’s almost clear of sediment. Drain the clams.
Add the wine and clams to a heavy pot with a lid. Cover and cook over high heat, giving the pot a shake every now and then until the clams open, about 5 minutes. Discard unopened shells. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Heat the olive oil in a heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring from time to time, until soft, 10–15 minutes. Add the zucchini and cook until tender, 5–10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2–3 minutes. Push the vegetables to one side of the skillet and add the tomato paste to the cleared area. Cook the tomato paste, stirring to keep it from sticking, until it “toasts” and turns a shade or two darker, 2–3 minutes. Stir the vegetables and tomato paste together. Remove from the heat.
Pick the clam meat from the shells and add it to the skillet with the vegetables. Reserve the warm clam broth (taste it to see how salty it is) for making the sauce. Save a few clams in their shells for presentation, if you like.
Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water until just tender, 8–12 minutes. Drain, then add the pasta to the zucchini and clams. Stir in the parmigiano and about ½ cup of the reserved clam broth to make a juicy sauce. Taste and adjust the seasonings. Divide the pasta and sauce between four pasta bowls and serve warm, with an extra drizzle of olive oil and some basil leaves.
PASTA WITH OLIVES, CAPERS & LEMON
serves 2–4
We always have a jar or two of capers and boxes of pasta in our pantry (we bet you do too). We keep a tub of meaty green olives, like the Sicilian Castelvetrano, in the fridge along with both fresh and preserved lemons. (We preserve our own and encourage you to do the same. It’s very simple to do, and their flavor is so much “fresher” than the jarred ones available from the store.) And on the counter we keep a couple of bottles of olive oil, not all expensive ones, but full of flavor. So a delicious pasta dish like this one, with just a few salty, bright-tasting ingredients, can quickly come together almost by itself, and at the very last minute.
½ cup green olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
1 large handful fresh parsley leaves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon capers, drained and chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1–2 teaspoons finely chopped preserved lemon rind or 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
1–2 pinches of crushed red pepper flakes
Juice of ½–1 lemon
¼ cup really good extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Salt and pepper
½ pound spaghetti or other dried pasta of your choice
Stir together the olives, parsley, capers, garlic, preserved lemon, red pepper flakes, lemon juice, and olive oil in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat until just tender, 10–12 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the sauce, loosening the sauce with some of the reserved cooking water; the dish should be luscious and juicy. Taste the pasta and adjust the seasonings. Transfer to a serving dish or individual plates and drizzle with more olive oil.
HOT SPAGHETTI TOSSED WITH RAW TOMATO SAUCE
serves 4–6
Use the juiciest, sweetest, ripest summer tomatoes you can find (maybe you have a garden full of them?—it’s everyone’s dream) for this light, fresh sauce.
FOR THE RAW TOMATO SAUCE
1½–2 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise
1–2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ cup passata di pomodoro, strained tomatoes, or tomato purée
4–6 tablespoons really good extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
FOR THE PASTA
1 pound spaghetti
Really good extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano
Small handful tiny fresh basil leaves
For the raw tomato sauce, grate the cut sides of the tomatoes on the large holes of a box grater into a large bowl, discarding the skin. Repeat until there are 2 cups of loose tomato pulp. Add the garlic, passata, and oil, and season with salt and pepper. This makes about 4 cups of sauce.
For the pasta, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the spaghetti and cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is just tender, 10–12 minutes. Drain. Toss the pasta with the raw tomato sauce in a large bowl. Drizzle with some olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Serve with lots of parmigiano-reggiano and garnish with the basil.
PASTA WITH SARDINES & FENNEL
serves 2–4
Pasta con le sarde, a classic Sicilian recipe that is made with tiny fresh sardines, tomatoes, and wild fennel, provided the inspiration for this summery dish.
1 small bulb fennel with fronds
1 handful fresh parsley leaves, chopped
2 tablespoons dried currants
1 teaspoon ground toasted fennel seeds
2 pinches crushed red pepper flakes
Zest of ½ lemon, finely grated
1 (3-ounce) can oil-packed sardines
¼ cup good extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
½ pound perciatelli or other pasta
Pick the tender, inner fennel fronds and chop enough to measure 1 tablespoon. Finely chop the fennel bulb, and put it in a large bowl with the chopped fronds. Add the parsley, currants, ground fennel, red pepper flakes, and lemon zest. Break up the sardines with your fingers, discarding the backbones, and add to the bowl. Add the olive oil, season with salt, and set aside.
Cook the pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water over high heat until just tender, 8–12 minutes. Drain, reserving some of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the sardines and fennel and toss well, loosening the sauce with some of the reserved cooking water. Serve warm.
PASTA WITH RADICCHIO & PANCETTA
Cook ½ pound torcetti or gemelli in a large pot of salted boiling water over high heat until just tender, 10–12 minutes. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a heavy medium pot over medium heat. Add 2–3 cloves crushed garlic and cook until fragrant and pale golden, about 2 minutes. Discard the garlic. Add 4 ounces diced pancetta (1 cup) and cook, stirring often, until golden, about 10 minutes. Add ¼ cup white wine and simmer for 2 minutes. Chop 3 medium heads radicchio into pieces roughly the same size as the pasta and cook, stirring often, until wilted and the color fades, 3–4 minutes. Season with salt and plenty of pepper. Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the radicchio and toss well, adding some of the reserved cooking water to loosen the sauce. Shave pecorino or parmigiano-reggiano over the pasta before serving.—serves 2–4
SPAGHETTI WITH CHERRY TOMATOES
Fresh tomatoes are hard to do without when their season is over. But hothouse cherry tomatoes get us through the long winter. If using summer cherry tomatoes for this dish, you won’t need to add the pinch of sugar—they’re sweet enough on their own.
Slice 1 pint cherry tomatoes in half and put them in a large bowl with a generous pinch of salt and sugar. Stir in ¼ cup really good extra-virgin olive oil and ½–1 teaspoon red wine vinegar. Add 2 big handfuls fresh basil leaves torn into pieces. Let the flavors meld together for 30 minutes.
Cook ½ pound spaghetti in a large pot of salted boiling water over high heat until just tender, 10–12 minutes. Drain, then toss well with the tomatoes, 1 small handful chopped fresh chives, and salt and pepper.—serves 2–4
PASTA WITH TUNA & PARSLEY
serves 2–4
We’re happy to open our purses and splurge on jars of Italian tuna packed in olive oil—its great texture and superior flavor make it worth it. When the hot pasta hits the “sauce” of lemony tuna and good olive oil something magical happens—the strands of spaghetti soak up the flavors, while the starch of the pasta makes everything just a bit creamy.
1⁄3 cup really good extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
2 anchovy filets, chopped
One (5 to 7-ounce) can/jar tuna packed in olive oil, drained
½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
Juice of ½–1 lemon
Salt and pepper
½ pound spaghetti
Put the olive oil and anchovies into a large bowl. Smash the anchovies with a wooden spoon to dissolve them into the oil. Use your fingers to flake the tuna into the bowl, then stir in the parsley, lemon juice, and salt and pepper; set aside. Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat until just tender, 10–12 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water. Toss the pasta with the sauce, loosening the sauce with some of the reserved cooking water. Adjust the seasonings. Drizzle with more oil when serving.
CHICKPEAS TERRA E MAR
serves 6–8
In Sicily, cooks sometimes use toasted bread crumbs in place of grated cheese, a holdover from harder times. We whirl slices of fresh or stale bread into crumbs in a food processor, toss them in a skillet with a little olive oil and salt and pepper, then “toast” them over medium-high heat until golden. They’ll keep in a covered container for up to a week.
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
8 anchovy filets
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons tomato paste
3–4 cups cooked chickpeas (see Cooking Dried Beans), or two 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper
A big handful of chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 pound orecchiette
1 cup toasted fresh bread crumbs
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, anchovies, red pepper flakes, and tomato paste. Cook, stirring until the anchovies melt into the oil. Add the chickpeas and stir until everything is well mixed. Season with salt and pepper. Remove the skillet from the heat and add the parsley.
Meanwhile, cook the orecchiette in a large pot of salted boiling water over high heat until just tender, about 10 minutes. Drain, reserving some of the cooking water. Return the pasta to the pot. Add the chickpeas and some of the reserved cooking water to loosen the sauce. Shake the pot gently to mix everything together. Season with salt and pepper. Garnish with the toasted bread crumbs. Serve with lemon wedges, if you like.
MEZZI RIGATONI WITH TOMATOES,
LOTS OF HERBS, HOT OIL & MOZZARELLA
serves 6
Imagine it’s a sunny summer day. You’re hungry, so you walk out into the garden, pick ripe tomatoes off the vine, cut a big handful of parsley, mint, basil, chives, maybe some rosemary and a little thyme, then head into the kitchen to make this simple pasta dish. The tomatoes are still warm from the sun, and your hands smell of licorice, pine, and mint. It’s already a heady experience and you’ve only just begun. When you mix them in a bowl with hot olive oil, their fragrance immediately fills the air and the tomatoes release their juices, mingling with the oily goodness in the bowl. The warm pasta goes in, along with some tender fresh mozzarella, and in no time you’ve satisfied your hunger in a big way. Try it sometime.
4–5 ripe tomatoes in season (about 2 pounds)
2 cups loosely packed mixed fresh herbs such as basil, mint, parsley, and/or chives, chopped
¾ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ pound mezzi rigatoni or other short, tubular dried pasta
Salt and pepper
1 pound fresh mozzarella, diced
Using a sharp knife, peel and core the tomatoes, then cut them in half crosswise. Gently squeeze each tomato half, then remove and discard the seeds. Dice the tomatoes into chunks that are about the same size as the pasta. Put the tomatoes and the chopped herbs into a large heatproof bowl.
Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat until it is hot and shimmering, but not smoking. Carefully pour the hot oil into the bowl with the tomatoes and herbs—it will sizzle and be immediately fragrant. Stir well.
Cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water over high heat until just tender, about 10 minutes. Drain the pasta and add it to the tomatoes and herbs. Season with salt and pepper.
Let the pasta cool until it’s just warm, then stir in the mozzarella. Adjust the seasonings before serving. It’ll likely need more salt and pepper.
PASTA SALAD WITH SHRIMP & PEAS
serves 2–4
If you have an open bottle of white wine on hand, add some to the poaching liquid—it will give the shrimp a little more flavor. (Pour yourself a little glass while you’re at it!)
¾ pound small or baby shrimp, peeled
¼ pound pipette or other small shell-shaped pasta
1 cup shelled fresh peas, blanched, or frozen peas, defrosted
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
¼ cup lemon-infused olive oil or really good extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper
Fill a medium pot with water and season it with a few generous pinches of salt to make it nearly as salty as seawater. Bring the water to a simmer over medium-high heat. Add the shrimp and poach them until just opaque, 1–1½ minutes. Drain and transfer the shrimp to a wide medium dish to cool (resist the urge to rinse the shrimp; it will wash away their delicate flavor).
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a medium pot of salted boiling water over high heat until just tender, 8–12 minutes. Drain the pasta and add it to the dish with the shrimp. Add the peas, red pepper flakes, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Gently stir everything together and adjust the seasonings. Serve at room temperature.
PASTA SALAD WITH BROCCOLI RABE & SALAMI
serves 4–6
We were in the studio one day, lamenting the taste of those wretched pasta salads you find in the prepared-food case—whether at a supermarket or a gourmet store. They may start out as a good idea, but after sitting in the case, they get gray and cold. Here’s our version of a “deli” pasta salad that is everything you wish the one you just bought was: fresh, full of flavor, and delicious. And it’s almost as easy to make as it is to buy.
1 bunch broccoli rabe, tough ends trimmed
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
Salt
½ pound rigatoni or other short dried tubular pasta
1 cup freshly grated pecorino
2 ounces dry salami, cut into strips about the same length as the pasta
Rinse the broccoli rabe and shake off the water, but don’t dry it. Chop it into 2-inch lengths. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil along with the red pepper flakes in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When it’s warm, add the wet broccoli rabe and season to taste with salt. Sauté, stirring often, until the broccoli rabe is tender but still bright green, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until just tender, about 8 minutes. Drain the pasta, reserving some of the cooking water. Return the pasta to the pot. Stir in the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, the grated pecorino, and enough of the reserved cooking water to make a light, creamy sauce. Add the broccoli rabe and salami and toss gently. Adjust the seasonings. Transfer to a serving bowl and drizzle with more olive oil. Serve just warm or at room temperature.