Orecchiette

This type of hand-made pasta is denser than gnocchi, and not made from potato. The indentation made in each piece, as with gnocchi, ensures even cooking and makes them look like little ears.

Ingredients

1 C semolina flour

2 C unbleached flour

1/4 t salt

3/4 C lukewarm water

Instructions

Combine the semolina, unbleached flour and salt, and mound it a bowl and pour in 3 - 4 Tbls. water. Mix until the flour has absorbed as much water as possible without becoming hard or dry - not at all sticky. Knead vigorously until the dough is smooth and elastic. This may take 20 minutes. Form the dough into a ball and cover.

To make the 'little ears', pull off a handful of the dough (keep the rest of the dough covered). On a lightly floured board, roll the dough into a rope about 3/4 inch in diameter. Cut the rope into slices no more than 1/8 inch thick to form small circles of dough. Now put one of these circles into the cupped palm of your hand and, with the thumb of the other hand, press and turn the circle at the same time to form a dent in the center that will spread the dough a little on each side. It should look like a small ear, with slightly thicker ear lobes. Repeat with all of the remaining dough, placing the orecchiette on a lightly floured cloth as they are made.

The orecchiette are cooked in the same manner as fresh flour and egg pasta, although they take longer. Watch them carefully and taste frequently for doneness.

Bolognese Sauce

No joking around with this post. Bolognese is serious stuff. The dish originates in the northern Italian city of Bologna, also known as "the fat city." It is not just a meat sauce; the "true" ingredients are hotly debated. Thank God that the Bolognese delegation of Accademia Italiana della Cucina voted that an authentic rendition only contains beef, pancetta, onions, carrots, celery, tomato paste, broth, red wine, and milk or cream. And the rules don't stop here. The width and thickness of the tagliatelle (fresh egg noodles) with which this sauce is traditionally served are noted by a golden noodle on a plaque in the Bologna city hall.

DONT SCREW UP!

Below are the Ingredients and Instructions, mixed, as you will find them in Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food.

Ingredients and Instructions

Heat in a large heavy-bottomed pot:

1 tablespoon olive oil

Add:

2 ounces pancetta (or bacon), diced fine

Cook over medium heat until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Add:

1 small onion, diced fine

1 celery stalk, diced fine

1 carrot, diced fine

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

5 sage leaves

2 thyme sprigs

1 bay leaf

Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 12 minutes.

While the vegetables are cooking, heat in a large heavy-bottomed pan, preferably cast iron:

1 tablespoon olive oil

Add and brown over medium-high heat, in two batches:

1 pound skirt steak, cut into 1/8-inch cubes

4 ounces pork shoulder, coarsely ground

Cook until the meat is a nice chestnut color. Once all the meat browned, pour in:

1 cup dry white wine

Reduce the wine by half, scraping the brown bits off the brown bits off the bottom of the pan. Add the browned meat and the deglazing juices to the tender vegetables with:

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Salt

Measure and stir together:

2 cups beef or chicken broth

1.5 cups milk

Pour enough of this liquid into the pot to bring it to the level of the meat and vegetables. Simmer gently until the meat is very tender, about 2 hours. As the liquid reduces, keep topping it up with the rest of the broth and milk, and skimming the fat that rises to the surface. Near the end, add a couple tablespoons of heavy cream. This helps tie the sauce together. When the meat is tender, remove the sauce from the heat and season to taste with more salt, if needed, add:

Fresh-ground black pepper

Butternut Squash Gnocchi

Substituting butternut squash for potato in this gnocchi recipe gives it something extra and made this a holiday-themed meal in November. The sweetness of the squash definitely complimented the wine sauce and rosemary. And obviously the melted butter didn't hurt.


Ingredients
Gnocchi
1 butternut squash, peeled and seeds removed, cubed
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
1 cup parmesan
2 egg yolks
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

White wine butter sauce
4 Tbsp butter
1 sprig rosemary
2 Tbsp chardonnay
salt & pepper

Instructions
Preheat the oven to 350. Place the squash on a baking sheet, drizzle with the olive oil and salt. Roast in the oven for about 35 minutes, turning once. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool. Transfer to a food processor and pulse.

In a bowl, combine the squash puree, flour, cheese, egg yolks and nutmeg and mix to form a dough. Knead the dough and form into a ball. Break a piece of dough off the ball and roll it into a 1-inch thick rope. Replenishing the flour on your board and hands when necessary, continue to form ropes until you have used up the dough ball. Using a knife, cut each rope into 1-inch pieces. Make thumb prints in each piece of gnocchi so they cook evenly.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil.

Next, melt the butter in a pan over medium heat. Add the rosemary and wine, cook until the wine has boiled off, but do not allow the sauce to brown.

When the water is at a rolling boiling, add the gnocchi and boil until the gnocchi rise to the surface, about 3 minutes. Remove using a slotted spoon, holding them over the pot until they have thoroughly drained (you may have to do this in batches), then add gnocchi directly to the butter sauce. Season with salt and pepper and toss to coat with the sauce. Garnish with a bit more cheese and serve.

Homemade Pasta with Sage Butter

So simple! The brown butter gets kind of caramelized and mixes with the sage perfectly.



Ingredients for Pasta (tagliatelle is best)
1 2/3 c flour, plus more for sprinkling on counter
3 eggs

Ingredients for Sauce
1 stick salted butter
6-8 sage leaves, minced

Instructions for pasta
Refer to homemade pasta recipe.

Instructions for sage butter sauce
When you've gotten the pasta dough ready & into the fridge, begin boiling your pasta water. Then in a large sauce pan melt the butter on low heat until browned, not burnt. It will begin to smell like caramel corn. Keep the butter over very low heat while you cut pasta. When you add the pasta to boiling water, add the minced sage to your brown butter. It will get a little crispy.

Once the pasta is cooked, put it in a large bowl and pour the butter sauce over it. Toss lightly. Makes enough for 4.

Handmade Pasta with Eggplant and Fresh Tomatoes

This sauce is best when the pasta is homemade (worth the effort).

Ingredients

Two small eggplants

salt

olive oil

6 garlic cloves, finely chopped

2 lbs fresh tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped

1 handful fresh basil torn into small pieces

6 oz. fresh mozzarella, diced

black pepper

fresh pasta (tagliatelle is best)

flour

3 eggs

Directions

Preparing the eggplants:

Cut the stems and navels off the eggplants. Cut into 1/4 in. thick slices, sprinkle with salt, and stand upright in a colander for 40 minutes to drain off the juices. Blot the salt from the slices with paper towels. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Brush both sides of eggplant slices with olive oil, place on baking sheets and roast for about 10-15 minutes. The time may vary, but just be sure to roast them until they are golden brown. Once cooled, dice and set aside.

Making the pasta:

While the eggplants are draining or roasting, heat a pot full of water and whisk 3 eggs in a bowl. Slowly stir in 1 and 2/3 cups of flour to the egg mix. You can use either all all-purpose flour or a mix of half semolina/half all-purpose. I find it easier to do the mixing in a bowl rather than on a counter. Stir until the mixture can be worked with your hands. Dump contents of bowl on a well floured surface and knead with your hands until it is elastic (about 5 minutes) adding flour as needed. Separate the dough into palm sized balls, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 20-30 minutes. Flatten 1/4 in. thick rectangles and run through a pasta machine progressing from the thickest to thinnest settings until you have long sheets. Be sure to run the sheets though the first settings several times, folding in half before each pass. You may need to cut these long sheets in half after the last pass, before you pass though the tagliatelle setting on your machine. I place the pasta on a laundry drying rack until I cook them. You may need to do all this while cooking the sauce. When the water is boiling, add a generous pinch of salt and return to a boil. Add the pasta to the water when the sauce is done. The pasta will take a mere 1-2 minutes to cook. Take out before it is completely done, as it will cook in the colander while it drains. 

Making the sauce:

Warm olive oil in a large skillet over med-low heat. Add garlic and saute until softened, 3-4 minutes. Add tomatoes, basil, 1/2 teaspoon salt and stir well. Simmer until excess water evaporates (about 15 minutes). Add diced eggplant, mozzarella, and pepper and toss well. Turn off heat, cover pan for several minutes until mozzarella is softened. Add the fresh pasta to the sauce and serve.