Pasta Modern (11 page)

Vegetarian

NON FARTI INFINOCCHIARE.

DON’T LET YOURSELF BE FENNELED.

A common expression in Italy meaning “don’t be tricked.” It comes from the fact that it’s hard to fully taste wine while eating fennel, so disreputable winemakers serve it to their clients to mask an inferior vintage
.

Italy, especially Southern Italy, is renowned for its many vegetable-based pasta dishes. In this chapter, you’ll discover traditional but unusual dishes like
Pasta with Zesty Horseradish-Tomato Sauce
, a specialty of Puglia, which is topped with freshly grated horseradish instead of cheese. There are also many modern creations, including
Kamut Spaghetti with Bean “Meatballs”
and my personal favorite,
Zucchini-Glazed Pasta
. There are sauces made with everything from Jerusalem artichokes to pumpkins, as well as those made just from reduced wine, like Sicily’s
Spaghetti in Red Wine
and Liguria’s
Pasta in White Wine
.

{
Paccheri alla carbonara
}

SERVES
4
|
REGION:
Central and southern Italy

It would be difficult to improve on that magical combination of simple ingredients in classic carbonara, but this version just might sway your loyalties. Sweet caramelized onions and squash take the place of pancetta, adding an autumnal note plus even more creaminess. When the weather turns cool, you’re sure to find yourself making this again and again. If you like, you can plate this chubby tube pasta upright, what they call “on their feet” in Italy.

1 large onion, thinly sliced

Olive oil

2 cups (230 g) diced, seeded, and peeled kabocha or butternut squash

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 large egg yolks

Pecorino or other aged cheese

1 pound (455 g)
paccheri
or any short, thick pasta

In a large sauté pan over medium heat, warm 2 tablespoons oil and cook the onions until they are very soft, about 8 minutes. Raise the heat to high and continue cooking until the onions are golden and caramelized, about 4 more minutes. Remove the onions from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan, add another 1 or 2 tablespoons and fry the squash until tender and golden at the edges, about 8 minutes. Return the onions to the pan, season with salt and pepper, and keep warm.

In a large serving bowl, beat the yolks with pepper and 2 heaping tablespoons grated cheese.

Boil the pasta in salted water until it is al dente. Drain and toss in the egg mixture, stirring until creamy, then stir in the hot onion-squash mixture. Serve topped with grated or shaved cheese.

BEHIND THE SHAPE

Italians from Campania and Calabria squabble over which region first invented the huge tube pasta called
paccheri
. The name
paccheri
is said to come from the Neapolitan dialect for the sound these wide pasta tubes make when plopped onto a plate—
slap!
You’ll also find this toothsome pasta sold by the name
schiaffone
, for the nondialect word for slap. It’s also sometimes even called by the whimsical name
maniche di frate
, monk’s sleeves.

{
Favò
}

SERVES
6
|
REGION:
Valle d’Aosta

I love the earthy, nutty flavor in this dish of the fresh fava beans in combination with the crunchy bread bits and creamy fontina cheese. Made with small tube pasta called
ditalini
, little thimbles, this is one of the few pasta dishes from Valle d’Aosta, the northernmost Italian region, which specializes more in polenta and rice.

This recipe is a specialty of Ozein, a small town that each year hosts
La Sagra della Favò
, a festival in honor of this luscious dish.

1 cup (150 g) shelled fava beans (about 1 ½ pounds/680 g in pods)

7 tablespoons (100 g) butter

3 slices whole-grain bread, cut into cubes

2 large shallots, thinly sliced in rounds

4 large ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and diced

⅓ cup (75 ml) tomato paste

12 ounces (340 g)
ditalini
or other short tube pasta

4 ounces (115 g) fontina cheese, diced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

In a large saucepan, boil the beans in salted water for about 2 minutes, until they float to the top. Remove them using a slotted spoon, reserving the cooking water. Peel the beans and set aside.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan, heat the butter over high heat until golden, then add the bread and, shaking the pan while it cooks, toast it on all sides. Remove the bread and set aside. In the same pan over medium-high heat, cook the shallots until soft, adding a little more butter if needed, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and beans and cook about 5 minutes.

Bring the reserved bean water to a boil and add the pasta, cooking until it is al dente. Drain and add to the sauce with a few tablespoons of the cooking liquid, stirring until well combined. Add the cheese and stir until it is completely melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve topped with the toasted bread.

{
Pasta alla deficeira
}

SERVES
4
|
REGION:
Liguria

Cooking pasta in wine instead of water creates an amazingly aromatic sauce. The flavor of the wine really stands out, so be sure to pick one with pronounced fruity taste and crisp acidity, like Soave or Pinot Grigio.

Traditionally, this dish was prepared at the height of the oil-pressing season, offered by the olive growers as a gesture of celebration to those who helped with the harvest. The name of the dish is from the Ligurian dialect for olive press,
deficeira
, and fittingly, it’s served with olive oil. A nice choice is the delicate, fruity variety made from the tiny
taggiasca
olives of Liguria.

1 (750-ml) bottle dry, fruity white wine

2 bay leaves

12 ounces (340 g) penne or any short tube pasta

Olive oil

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Crescenza or any aged cheese

In a large saucepan, bring the wine and bay leaves to a boil. Add the pasta, lower the heat to a low boil, and cook, loosely covered, until the wine is absorbed and the pasta is al dente, about 20 minutes. Add more wine or hot water a little at a time if the pasta seems to be getting dry, or if it is too wet when almost al dente, raise the heat to high to burn off the remaining liquid and alcohol. Stir in 3 to 4 tablespoons oil and season with salt and pepper. Serve topped with grated or shaved cheese.

WINE AS PASTA SAUCE

In several regions, Italians add a splash of wine, instead of sauce, to cooked pasta. In the winter, local farmers even enjoy a sort of liquid pasta drink as a pick-me-up, made from the hot pasta cooking water mixed with red wine and generous amounts of crushed black or red pepper. In Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna, it’s common, especially for the older generations, to top
plin
, the area’s small ravioli, with red wine. In Molise, they make a simple pasta soup called
scattone
, where the broth is just the pasta’s cooking water seasoned with red wine and pepper. A fabulous medieval festival called
La Sagra dello Scattone
is dedicated to this centuries-old dish, held each year in August in the Molise towns of Torella del Sannio and Bagnoli del Trigno.

{
Cupola di bucatini
}

SERVES
8
|
REGION:
Campania and Sicily

It’s hard to top this dish for pure, showstopping drama. The stately dome of pasta houses a colorful filling of string beans, carrots, zucchini, and plenty of rich Italian cheese. But don’t get intimidated. This architecturally magnificent—and delicious—dish is actually quite easy to create. The trick is to use
bucatini
: long, thick pasta that keeps its shape as you coil it into a bowl.

This recipe dates to eighteenth-century Naples, and was taught to me at the Garofalo pasta factory, right in their office kitchen.