Salsa col Formaggio from Emilia
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons minced onion
1½ tablespoons flour
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
1½ cups milk
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Heat the butter in a saucepan and stir in the onion. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes, or until onion is soft; do not brown it. Stir in flour, salt, pepper and nutmeg. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for about 1 minute. Gradually stir in the milk, stirring well after each addition to prevent lumping, until the sauce is smooth and thickened. Remove from the heat and stir in the Parmesan.
Toma to Sauce 6 servings
La Pomerola from Tuscany
For pasta or any other dish needing a tomato sauce. This is a quick-cooking meatless toma to sauce, which preserves the fresh tomato taste. It is different from the long-simmered tomato sauces of the Italian South, which are made with tomato paste.
3 pounds fresh, ripe plum tomatoes, cut into halves and seeded, or 3 cups canned plum tomdtoes, drained, plus 1 cup of their juice
1 medium-size to large onion, cut into halves
1 medium-size carrot, minced
1 celery s talk, minced
salt
freshly ground pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons minced fresh basil, or 1 teaspoon dried basil
⅓ cup olive oil
Into a heavy saucepan put the tomatoes, one half of the onion, the carro t, celery, sal t and pepper to taste and the basil. Bring to the boiling point quickly. Cook over high heat, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes, or until tomatoes are soft. Purée through a food mill. Mince remaining ½ onion. Heat the olive oil and cook onion in it until soft. Add puréed tomatoes. Check seasoning; if necessary, add a little more salt and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, for 10 to 15 minutes, no longer. Quickness of cooking preserves the flavor of th e tomatoes.
Pizzaiola Sauce for ½ to 1 pound pasta
La Pizzaiola from Naples
The tomatoes are cooked just long enough to soften, but no longer, so as not to lose their fresh taste. The sauce is also served on steaks.
¼ cup olive oil
2 pounds tomatoes (6 to 8), peeled, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt
¼ teaspoon hot red pepper flakes, or to taste
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons minced parsley
Heat the olive oil in a saucepan and add all the other ingredients. Cook over high heat, stirring frequently, for 5 to 10 minutes, or until tomatoes are soft.
Zucchini Sauce for ½ to 1 pound pasta
Salsa di Zucchine alla Friulana from Friuli
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
½ cup minced onion
1 garlic clove, minced
⅓ cup minced sweet pepper
2 pounds zucchini, sliced
3 cups peeled, seeded and chopped tomatoes
½ teaspoon dried thyme
salt
freshly ground pepper
Heat olive oil and butter. Over medium heat, stirring constantly, cook onion and garlic until onion is soft and golden. Add all the other ingredients. Cook covered over low heat for about 20 minutes, stirring frequently. The zucchini should be tender but not mushy, and slices should preserve their shape.
NOTE: This may also be served as a side dish. If desired, sauté ½ pound sliced mushrooms in 2 tablespoons butter and add to the sauce for last 5 minutes of cooking.
Pirate Sauce for Pasta for ½ to 1 pound pasta
La Salsa del Pirata from Genoa
This sauce tastes best with fettuccine, but may be served with a heavier pasta such as linguine, riga toni, or elbows. The olives give the sauce a deep purple-red color.
1 pound ripe plum tomatoes, chopped
4 tablespoons minced fresh basil, or 2 teaspoons dried basil
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large garlic clove, mashed
4 anchovy fillets, drained and chopped, or 2 tablespoons anchovy paste
1 tablespoon drained capers
½ cup chopped pitted black Italian or Greek olives
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
1 to 2 teaspoons minced hot red pepper, or ½ teaspoon dried hot pepper flakes
salt
freshly ground pepper
1 pound freshly cooked fettuccine, al dente
freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Put the tomatoes into a saucepan with 2 tablespoons of the basil. Bring to the boiling point, reduce heat to low, and cook without a cover for 7 to 10 minutes, or until tomatoes are soft. Push them through a strainer or a food mill, or purée them in a blender or food processor. Reserve the tomato purée. Heat butter and olive oil in a heavy saucepan. Stir in garlic and anchovies or anchovy paste. Over medium heat, using a wooden spoon, blend garlic and anchovies into the butter and oil to make a thin paste; this takes about 3 minutes. Stir reserved tomato purée into the anchovy mixture and blend. Stir in capers, olives, oregano and hot pepper. Cook covered over low heat, stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Meantime, cook the fettuccine, drain, and place in a heated serving bowl. Spoon the sauce over the pasta and sprinkle with Parmesan. Serve immediately and very hot, with more Parmesan on the side.
Anchovy Sauce about ¾ cup, for 1 to 1½ pounds pasta
Salsa di Alia All-Italian
For pasta, fish, seafood and boiled meats.
¼ cup olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
2 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
1 or 2 cans (2 ounces each) anchovies, drained and chopped
¼ cup dry white wine
⅓ cup minced parsley
Heat together olive oil and butter. Add garlic and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until garlic is soft but not browned. Add anchovies and wine and mix well. Cook over low heat, stirring frequently, until anchovies have dissolved into the sauce. Stir in the parsley.
Stracotto Meat Sauce for 1 to 1½ pounds pasta
Lo Stracotto from Rome
Stracotto means overcooked in Italian, and overcooking is the secret of this sauce, one of the best in Italian cookery. The sauce must be absolutely free of fat; the only way of achieving this is to choose lean, top-quality beef, and then trim off any fat. The mushrooms should be an imported dried species. Dry red wine may be used instead of Marsala, but Marsala gives the best flavor by far to the sauce.
2 ounces imported dried mushrooms
1 pound boneless top-quality beef
8 tablespoons butter
1 medium-size onion, minced
1 medium-size carrot, minced
½ celery stalk, minced
½ cup minced parsley
⅔ to 1 cup dry Marsala
1 cup beef bouillon
salt
freshly ground pepper
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
Crumble the mushrooms into a bowl and soak them in lukewarm water to cover for 30 minutes. Cut the meat into the smallest possible dice but do not grind it; ground meat gives a different flavor and texture to the sauce. Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan. Add the onion, carrot, celery and parsley. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Add the meat. Cook, stirring all the time, until meat is lightly browned. Add mushrooms and their liquid, Marsala and bouillon. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add the lemon rind. Cover tightly. Simmer over lowest possible heat, preferably on an asbestos fireguard, for about 3 hours, or until the meat has almost dissolved. Stir frequently. The length of cooking time is necessary for the flavors to blend. The sauce should be thick; if too liquid, cook without a cover to allow for evaporation.
Chicken-Liver Sauce for Risotto, Polenta and Pasta
for ½ to 1 pound pasta
Salsa di Fegatini di Pollo from Lombardy
¼ pound pancetta or blanched lean bacon, minced
1 small onion, minced
¼ cup minced parsley
1 tablespoon butter
1 pound chicken livers, trimmed and cut into halves or quarters
½ pound mushrooms, cut into thin slices
½ cup dry Marsala
½ teaspoon ground sage
salt
freshly ground pepper
On a chopping board, mince together to a paste the pancetta, onion and parsley. Or use a food processor. Put the butter and the pancetta mixture into a deep frying pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes. Add chicken livers and mushrooms. Cook over medium heat, stirring all the time, for 3 more minutes, or until the livers have browned. Stir in Marsala, sage, and salt and pepper to taste. Cook over low heat for 10 more minutes, stirring occasionally.
Pesto (Basil Sauce) about 1 cup
Pesto alla Genovese from Genoa
This famous sauce has now become popular in the United States. It is used as a pasta dressing or, by the spoonful, as an addition to soups and vegetables. Basil gives the Pesto its basic flavor. As with all classic recipes, there are individual interpretations. The recipe below is the standard one. Traditionally Pesto is made in a mortar with a pestle, by first grinding the dry ingredients together and then adding the olive oil. I think it is as good made in a blender or a food processor. It must be made with fresh basil which is chopped fine rather than puréed, and the texture should have the consistency of thick pancake batter.
2 cups loosely packed fresh basil leaves, no stems
2 garlic cloves, or to taste, chopped
¼ cup pine nuts (pignoli)
2 tablespoons grated Romano cheese and 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, or 4 tablespoons either Romano or Parmesan cheese
4 to 6 tablespoons olive oil
salt
freshly ground pepper
Put the basil, garlic and pine nuts into a blender container. Blend at low speed for a few seconds, until the ingredients are chopped. Add cheese and half of the olive oil, and blend again. Scrape the mixture down from the sides of the blender. Turn speed to low and trickle in remaining olive oil while blending. By hand, stir in salt and pepper to taste.
NOTE: Pesto keeps well refrigerated, in a jar, with a thin film of olive oil on the top. It also freezes well.
Professor Pezzo’s Pesto about ⅔ cup
Il Pesta del Professor pezzo from Genoa
The professor is a distinguished antiquarian who likes to cook. His Pesto is milder than the preceding one.
40 large basil leaves (1 to 1½ loosely packed cups)
boiling water
2 tablespoons pine nuts (pignoli)
2 tablespoons grated Pecorino cheese
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter, softened
milk
Put the basil into a small bowl and cover with boiling water. Let stand for 3 minutes, drain, and put into a blender container. Put the pine nuts into a small bowl and cover with boiling water. Let stand for 3 minutes, drain, and add to the basil. Add cheeses, olive oil and butter. Add ¼ cup milk and blend at low speed. If the mixture is too thick, add a little more milk, 1 tablespoon at a time, and blend again at low speed.
NOTE: This Pesto does not keep and should be used when freshly made.
VARIATION: PARSLEY SAUCE
Substitute the basil by Italian parsley sprigs (no stems) and proceed as above.