Ahead-of-time note Everything can be prepared several hours in advance up to this point. Pour a little bit of the sauce from the pan over the meat from the fish heads that had been set aside and cover the bowl or saucer with plastic wrap.
Sicilian Sardine Sauce
THE COOKING of Sicily dazzles us with its fluent use of a more vivid vocabulary of ingredients than any other cuisine in Italy is accustomed to command. Take Palermo’s pasta con le sarde—pasta with sardines—a dish that takes the fragrances of saffron and of wild mountain fennel, the pungencies of sardines and anchovies, the nectar of raisins, and the toasty quality of nuts, and merges them into a full-throated chorus of appetite-stirring harmony.
To achieve a reasonable facsimile of pasta con le sarde, one must be prepared to make substantial compromises: Fresh sardines, although they do exist, make rare and unpredictable appearances and may have to be replaced by canned sardines; outside of northern California, where wild fennel can be found from spring through summer, we have to make do with the tops of cultivated finocchio.
For 4 to 6 servings
1 pound fresh sardines OR 8 ounces, net weight, drained choice canned sardines packed in olive oil
2 cups finocchio leaf tops (see note below) OR 1¾ cups fresh wild fennel
Salt
1 tablespoon black raisins
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons chopped onion
4 flat anchovy fillets (preferably the ones prepared at home), chopped fine
⅓ cup pignoli (pine nuts)
1½ tablespoons tomato paste, dissolved in 1 cup lukewarm water together with a large pinch of powdered saffron OR ½ teaspoon crumbled saffron threads
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
1 to 1½ pounds pasta
½ cup dry, unflavored bread crumbs, lightly toasted in the oven or in a skillet
Note Vegetable markets usually sell finocchio with the tops trimmed away, so you must arrange in advance for them to be kept for you.
Recommended pasta We should do as Palermo does, and choose the thick, hollow spaghetti that in Sicily is called u pirciatu. It is the same shape as the one identified on boxes as bucatini or perciatelli.
1. If using fresh sardines: Snap off the head of the fish, pulling away with it most of the intestines.
Remove the center back fin together with the little bones that are attached to it by pulling it off starting at the tail end.
Hold the sardine with one hand, slip the thumbnail of the other hand into the belly cavity, and run it against the spine all the way to the tail. This will open up the sardine completely flat, exposing the spine.
Slip the nails of your thumb and forefinger under the spine, and work it loose. Lift the spine, freeing it from the flesh, but do not snap it off. Pull the spine toward the tail, and pull it sharply away from the body of the fish, taking the tail with it.
Wash the boned, butterflied sardine under cold running water, rinsing away any remaining portion of the guts or any loose bones.
When all the sardines are done, lay them flat on a large cutting board, propping up one end of the board to let the fish drain.
If using canned sardines: Begin the recipe with the next step.
2. Wash the finocchio tops or the wild fennel in cold water. Bring 4 to 5 quarts of water to a boil, add salt, and as the water resumes boiling put in the greens. Cook for 10 minutes with a cover set on askew. Off heat, retrieve the cooked fennel greens using a colander spoon, but do not pour out the water in the pot. Save it for cooking the pasta later.
3. When cool enough to handle, squeeze the greens gently in your hand to force moisture out, then chop them.
4. Soak the raisins in several changes of cold water for no less than 15 minutes, then drain them and chop them.
5. Put water in a saucepan and bring it to a lively simmer.
6. Choose a sauté pan that can subsequently accommodate all the ingredients except the pasta. Put in the olive oil and chopped onion, and turn on the heat to medium. Cook the onion, stirring, until it becomes translucent. Place the sauté pan over the pot with simmering water, add the anchovies, and stir them constantly with a wooden spoon, mashing them from time to time with the back of the spoon.
7. When the anchovies are nearly dissolved to a paste, return the pan to the burner over medium heat, add the greens, and cook for 5 minutes, stirring from time to time.
8. If using fresh sardines: Clear some space in the pan by pushing its contents to one side with the wooden spoon. Into the cleared area, put as many sardines as will fit flat without overlapping. Cook them briefly on one side, then on the other, less than a minute for each side. Push the cooked sardines to one side of the pan, clearing room to cook more sardines, continuing in this fashion until all the sardines have been done.
If using canned sardines: Proceed directly to the next step.
9. Add the pignoli, the chopped raisins, the tomato paste and saffron solution, salt, and a few grindings of black pepper, and turn over all ingredients to season them evenly. Continue to cook at medium heat, letting all the liquid in the pan bubble away. If using canned sardines, add them at this point, turning them over in the sauce two or three times, then remove from heat.
10. Bring the water in which you cooked the fennel greens to a boil, add a little salt, and in it cook the pasta.
11. Toss the sardine sauce with the cooked drained pasta. Add the bread crumbs and toss again. Allow the pasta to settle several minutes before serving.
Ahead-of-time note The sauce can be prepared several hours in advance up to this point, but if you are using canned sardines, put them in only when reheating the sauce to toss it with the pasta.
Baked Pasta con le Sarde with Toasted Almonds
1. Prepare the sardine sauce, following the instructions in the basic recipe above.
2. If using fresh sardines, purchase an additional ¼ pound, clean them and butterfly them as described in the basic recipe, and sauté them in a separate pan in hot olive oil, cooking them just long enough to brown them lightly on each side. Transfer them to a cooling rack or to a paper-lined platter to drain.
3. Blanch ¼ cup of shelled almonds, toast them for a few minutes in an oven preheated to 350°, and process to a very coarse consistency or chop roughly by hand. (Leave the oven turned on to 350°.)
4. Choose a 10-cup bake-and-serve dish (13 inches by 9 inches, if rectangular), and smear with butter.
5. Cook the pasta in the fennel-greens cooking water as described in the basic recipe, draining it while it is still slightly undercooked, a few degrees firmer than al dente. Line the bottom of the baking dish with a layer of pasta, spread over it some of the sardine sauce, and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Top with another layer of pasta, sauce, and bread crumbs, proceeding thus until you have used up all the pasta and sauce. Reserve some of the bread crumbs. If using fresh sardines, distribute the separately browned sardines over the top layer, skin side up. Sprinkle with the chopped up toasted almonds and the bread crumbs. Drizzle very lightly with olive oil. Bake in the 350° oven for 5 minutes. After removing it from the oven, allow the pasta to settle for several minutes before serving it.
Pink Shrimp Sauce with Cream
For 6 servings with tortellini or 4 servings with flat noodles
½ pound medium shrimp, unshelled weight
⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped fine
1½ tablespoons tomato paste dissolved in ½ cup dry white wine
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
½ cup heavy cream
Homemade tortellini OR 1 pound other pasta
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Recommended pasta The ideal combination for this elegant and lively sauce is Tortellini with Fish Stuffing. It will also suit other homemade pasta cuts, such as fettuccine, or pappardelle.
1. Shell the shrimp, cut them in half lengthwise, removing the vein, and r
inse under cold running water.
2. Put the olive oil and the chopped garlic in a saucepan, and turn on the heat to medium. Cook the garlic, stirring it, until it becomes colored a very pale gold, then add the tomato paste and wine solution. Pour it in all at once quickly to avoid spattering. Cook for 10 minutes, stirring from time to time.
3. Add the shrimp, salt, and liberal grindings of pepper, and turn up the heat to medium high. Cook for 2 minutes or so, turning the shrimp over frequently to coat well. Remove the pan from heat.
4. With a slotted spoon, retrieve about ⅔ of the shrimp from the pan, and purée them in the food processor or blender.
5. Return the puréed shrimp to the pan. Turn on the heat to medium, add the cream, and cook for about 1 minute, stirring constantly, until the cream thickens. Taste and correct for salt and pepper.
6. Toss the sauce with cooked drained pasta. Add the chopped parsley, toss again, and serve at once.
Butter and Parmesan Cheese Sauce
THE BASIC WHITE SAUCE of butter and Parmesan has, for generations, eclipsed all others among families of northern Italy as the favorite way of seasoning pasta. The sauce is produced by the heat of the pasta itself as it melts the raw cheese and the butter, and by the care with which the pasta is tossed to fuse both ingredients to itself and to each other. It is perhaps the best sauce for developing and mastering that skill of tossing, which is essential to the success of any pasta dish.
For 4 servings
1 pound pasta
1 cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese
4 tablespoons (½ stick) choicest quality butter
Recommended pasta Butter and cheese is equally good with homemade pasta and with boxed, dry pasta. Try it with Tortelloni Stuffed with Swiss Chard, Prosciutto, and Ricotta, or with spaghetti. Always serve with additional grated cheese on the side.
1. Put hot, just-cooked, and drained pasta in a preheated serving bowl. Add about 4 tablespoonfuls of grated cheese and toss rapidly and thoroughly, turning all the pasta in the cheese, which will begin to melt and cling.
2. Add half the butter and another 4 tablespoonfuls of cheese, and toss thoroughly and quickly again.
3. Add the remaining cheese, and turn the pasta over with it three or four times.
4. Add the remaining butter, toss until all the butter has melted, and serve at once with additional cheese at the table.
Butter and Sage Sauce
IN ITALY, this sauce is called burro oro e salvia, “golden butter and sage,” because to become fully impregnated with the penetrating sage fragrance, the butter must be heated until it becomes colored a rich gold.
For 4 to 6 servings
4 to 5 tablespoons choicest quality butter
6 to 8 whole sage leaves, preferably fresh
1 pound pasta
Freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese for the table
Recommended pasta Butter and sage works best with homemade pasta, either a noodle cut such as fettuccine, or stuffed pasta, such as Tortelli Stuffed with Parsley and Ricotta. It would also be very good with Potato Gnocchi.
Put the butter in a small skillet and turn on the heat to medium. When the butter foam subsides, and the butter’s color is a tawny gold but not yet brown, add the sage leaves. Cook for a few seconds, turning the sage leaves over once, then pour the contents of the pan over cooked, drained pasta. Toss thoroughly, and serve immediately with grated Parmesan on the side.
Cream and Butter Sauce
THIS IS THE SAUCE that has become known to diners throughout the world as all’Alfredo, after the Roman restaurateur who popularized it. If a fat, fresh white truffle should come your way, one of the best uses for it is to shave it over pasta tossed with Alfredo’s sauce.
For 4 to 6 servings
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons choicest quality butter
1¼ pounds homemade fettuccine, OR tortellini, OR green tortellini
⅔ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese, plus additional cheese at the table
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
Whole nutmeg
Recommended pasta No other sauce is a better vehicle for the virtues of homemade pasta, and in particular for fettuccine. It is also quite blissful with tortellini.
1. Choose any flameproof ware suitable for tossing and serving the pasta in later. Put in ⅔ cup of the heavy cream and all the butter, turn on the heat to medium, and cook for less than a minute, just until the cream and butter have thickened. Turn off the heat.
2. Cook the pasta, draining it while it is still very firm and even slightly underdone, a degree or so firmer than al dente. Freshly made fettuccine will take just seconds.
3. Transfer the drained pasta to the pan containing the butter and cream, turn on the heat to low, and toss the pasta thoroughly, bringing it up and around from the bottom, coating all the strands with the cream and butter sauce.
4. Add the remaining ⅓ cup of cream, the ⅔ cup of grated Parmesan, a pinch of salt, a few grindings of pepper, and a very tiny grating—less than ⅛ teaspoon—of nutmeg. Toss again briefly until the fettuccine are well coated. Taste and correct for salt and serve immediately from the pan, with additional grated Parmesan on the side.
Gorgonzola Sauce
THE ONLY COMPLICATION attendant on this sauce is finding the right gorgonzola. If you have a good, conscientious cheese dealer, ask to be notified when a fresh wheel of gorgonzola arrives from Italy. Once cut, the cheese does not improve, it becomes dry, crumbly, and yellowish. When it is at its peak, it is a warm white color, creamily soft and even runny.
Do not use gorgonzola straight out of the refrigerator, because the cold stunts its flavor and aroma. If you are going to use it the same day you’ve bought it, do not refrigerate it at all. If you have had it a day or two, take it out of the refrigerator at least 6 hours before using it.
For 6 servings
¼ pound gorgonzola (see prefatory remarks above), kept at room temperature for 6 hours
⅓ cup milk
3 tablespoons butter
Salt
½ cup heavy whipping cream
1¼ pounds pasta
⅓ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese, plus additional cheese at the table
Recommended pasta Although it is excellent over such factory-made pasta shapes as rigatoni and penne, gorgonzola sauce is at its best with homemade pasta—fettuccine, or garganelli, and with Potato Gnocchi.
1. Choose flameproof serving ware that can subsequently accommodate all the pasta. Put in the gorgonzola, milk, butter, and one or two pinches of salt, and turn on the heat to low. Stir with a wooden spoon, mashing the cheese with the back of the spoon and, as it begins to dissolve, incorporating it with the milk and butter. Cook for a minute or two until the sauce has a dense, creamy consistency. Take off the heat until the moment you are nearly ready to drain the pasta. Bear in mind that if you are using freshly made pasta, it will cook in just a few seconds and the sauce needs to be reheated for about 1 minute.
2. Shortly before the pasta is cooked, add the heavy cream to the sauce and stir over medium-low heat until it is partly reduced. Add the cooked drained pasta (if you are doing gnocchi, add sauce to the gnocchi as each batch is retrieved from the pot and transferred to a warm platter), and toss with the sauce. Add the ⅓ cup grated Parmesan and toss thoroughly to melt it. Serve immediately, directly from the pan, with additional grated cheese on the side.
Mushroom, Ham, and Cream Sauce
For 6 to 8 servings
¾ pound fresh mushrooms, either white button OR cremini
3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons shallot OR onion chopped fine
Salt
Black pepper, ground fresh from the mill
6 ounces boiled unsmoked ham, cut into very narrow julienne strips
6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
The homemade fettuccine suggested below
FOR
TOSSING THE PASTA
2 tablespoons butter
6 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
½ cup freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese, plus additional cheese at the table
Recommended pasta The loveliest match here would be with paglia e fieno, “straw and hay,” yellow and green fettuccine. For the amount of sauce above, follow the basic proportions given for yellow pasta dough and green pasta dough, to make approximately 10 ounces of the former and 1 pound of the latter. Of course, the sauce would taste equally good with either yellow or green pasta alone. In this case, double the quantity of either yellow or green fettuccine.
1. Slice off and discard the ends of the mushroom stems. Wash the mushrooms very rapidly under running cold water, then pat them thoroughly dry with a soft towel. Dice into ¼-inch cubes and set aside.
2. Choose a sauté pan or skillet that can subsequently accommodate the mushrooms without crowding. Put in the butter and chopped shallot or onion, turn on the heat to medium, and cook the shallot or onion until it has become colored a pale gold.
3. Turn up the heat to high and add the diced mushrooms. Stir thoroughly to coat well, and when the mushrooms have soaked up all the butter, turn the heat down to low, add salt and a few grindings of pepper, and turn the mushrooms over 2 or 3 times.
4. As soon as the mushrooms release their liquid, which should happen quickly, turn the heat up to high and boil the liquid away, stirring frequently.
5. Turn the heat down to medium, add the ham, and stir while it cooks for about a minute or less. Add the cream, and cook just long enough for the cream to become reduced and slightly thickened. Taste and correct for salt and pepper. Turn off the heat and set the sauce aside.
Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking Page 22
