One of the guilty pleasures that I have never, up to now, revealed to a living soul is my penchant for late-night pasta snacks. But not just any pasta, but a pasta risottata: pastina of the kind usually used for soups, cooked like a risotto, in just enough liquid (usually a … Read More
Lasagna di Carnevale (Angelina’s Lasagna)
Among Angelina’s generation, each of the female family members had a special dish that she was known for. My great-aunt, Angelina’s sister, who we called zi’-zi’ (loosely translated, ‘auntie’), was the ravioli specialist. Another great-aunt, zi’ Annin’, was known as “the little pie-maker” and yet another specialized in calzone pugliese, … Read More
Gnocchi al gorgonzola (Potato Gnocchi with Gorgonzola Sauce)
It’s Thursday, and the Romans out there will know that Thursdays in Rome (and perhaps in the rest of Italy, I’m not entirely sure…) is gnocchi day: giovedi’ gnocchi as the saying goes. Today’s offering is gnocchi with gorgonzola sauce. Here’s how you make this incredibly rich and unctuous … Read More
Polenta pasticciata con fagioli e verza (Baked Polenta with Beans and Cabbage)
It’s a shame to throw away leftover polenta. There are so many delicious ways to use it. As mentioned in an earlier post on how to make polenta, it hardens as it cools and can be sliced into squares or other shapes, then grilled or fried. But my favorite way … Read More
How to Make Homemade Polenta
Homemade polenta is one of the most emblematic dishes of the northern Italian cuisines from the Veneto to Lombardia to Piemonte. It is also one of the oldest foods eaten in Italy, dating back at least to 990 BCE. In its original form, polenta—known to the ancient Romans as pulmentum—was … Read More
Pizzoccheri alla valtellinese (Buckwheat Pasta from the Italian Alps)
Nothing says ‘winter’ to me like pizzoccheri alla valtellinese, an Alpine buckwheat pasta dish oozing with melted cheese and winter vegetables, a typical dish of the Valtellina in the uppermost stretches of Lombardia, a fairly narrow valley region running northeast from the Lago di Como along the border with Switzerland. … Read More
Fazzoletti di crespelle (Stuffed Crepe “Handkerchiefs”)
It may come as a surprise, but Italians make crepes. They’re called crespelle in Italian (even if many Italians just call them by their French name, as we do in English). The most common use for crepes in Italian cookery is not as dessert, but as stuffed pasta. They can … Read More
Mezzelune al brasato (Half-moon Ravioli Stuffed with Braised Beef)
Here’s a wonderful way to ‘recycle’ leftover brasato or other pot roast—as a filling for a half-moon shaped stuffed pasta called mezzelune: Ingredients Leftover brasato (pot roast) 1-2 eggs 100g (3-1/2 oz) freshly grated Parmesan cheese Salt and pepper A scrape of nutmeg One batch of fresh egg pasta, or dumpling … Read More
