Mealtime Magic: Cavatelli con Cime di Rapa e Pangrattati
The long awaited companion volume to Mary Ann Esposito's forthcoming 2019 PBS series "Ciao Italia" was recently published. CIAO ITALIA: MY LIFELONG FOOD ADVENTURES IN ITALY is a collection of over 160 authentic Italian dishes, 60 full-color food photos, and over 30 scenic images and personal pictures from the author’s travel archives.
CIAO ITALIA: MY LIFELONG FOOD ADVENTURES IN ITALY emphasizes from-scratch cooking, focusing on fresh ingredients and the healthy components of the Mediterranean diet. Recipes include unique dishes like savory meat-stuffed olives from the Marche region, sassy spaghetti alla puttanesca from Naples, and the most delicious and unusual chocolate cookies from Modica, Sicily with a surprise ingredient.
From creating and launching Ciao Italia in 1989 to authoring 13 cookbooks, Esposito has inspired a worldwide audience who wants to know more about Italian food and culture. CIAO ITALIA: MY LIFELONG FOOD ADVENTURES IN ITALY stays true to traditions and sets out to keep the soul of Italian regional cooking alive, while giving readers a new appreciation and way of looking at Italy’s rich artisan food culture. Part memoir and travelogue, Mary Ann’s constant search for what gives the recipes meaning and how they can be adapted to anyone’s lifestyle and level of cooking skill sets the book apart from other Italian cookbooks. The seasoned chef shows that it is the quality of the ingredients that is the bedrock of Italian regional foods.
In personal essays, Mary Ann takes us to a San Marzano canning factory in Straino to learn what a San Marzano tomato really is; introduces readers to wonderful places off the beaten path, like the medieval stone city of Gubbio where a very unusual race takes place; and shares unique experiences she has had both making and eating food with native Italians in their homes and restaurants.
Check out the recipe for Cavatelli con Cime di Rapa e Pangrattati below!
Cavatelli con Cime di Rapa e Pangrattati
Little Caves with Broccoli Rapa and Breadcrumbs
Cavatelli means “little caves” because the dough is shaped similar to gnocchi. There are no eggs in this dough. Water, durum semolina flour (a finer grind of semolina), and a pinch of salt are the sole ingredients. The dough is rolled into long ropes the width of your pinkie finger and traditionally cut into ¼-inch pieces with a small spatula-like tool called a rasola, but a butter knife will do. Each piece is rolled under your finger to create an indentation. The little hollows of the cavatelli nicely trap the slightly spicy sauce.
Serves 6 to 8
CAVATELLI DOUGH
2½ cups fine durum semolina flour
½ teaspoon salt
¾ cup warm water
SAUCE
½ cup fresh breadcrumbs
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 oil-packed anchovy fillets, drained and coarsely chopped
First, make the dough. In a large bowl mix the flour, salt, and enough water to make a dough that is the consistency of bread dough. Add more flour or water as needed. Knead the dough until smooth, then cover the dough and let it rest for 30 minutes.
Cut the dough into 6 pieces and roll each piece under the palm of your hand to create a log that is the thickness of your pinky finger and 14-inches long. Cut each log into ¼-inch-long pieces.
With your finger, draw each piece of dough across a wooden butter paddle, cavarola board, or wooden cutting board, leaving an impression or “little cave,” and place them on floured towels. At this point, you can freeze the cavatelli on the trays and then transfer them to plastic bags once hard, or cook them immediately.
To make the sauce, toast the breadcrumbs in a large sauté pan over medium heat until golden, then transfer them to a bowl.
In the same pan, heat the olive oil; add the anchovies, garlic, and dried chile until the anchovies almost dissolve. Cover the pan and keep the sauce warm while the cavatelli cook.
Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil over high heat; add the salt, cavatelli, and broccoli rapa and cook until the cavatelli are al dente, about 4 minutes. Drain and reserve 1 cup of the cooking water.
Transfer the cavatelli and broccoli rapa to the sauté pan and combine well over medium heat with the sauce, adding some of the reserved cooking water if the sauce is too dry. Transfer the mixture to a platter and top with the breadcrumbs. Serve hot.
Note: Cavatelli makers can save time; they are available online at Fantes.com. Rasola tools are available from www.artisanpastatools.com.
About the author
Mary Ann Esposito’s nationally televised PBS show, “Ciao Italia,” is America's longest-running continuous cooking show with over 1.2 million viewers per episode. Mary Ann has authored 12 cookbooks and appeared on programs such as “The Today Show,” “Regis and Kelly,” QVC, the Food Network, Discovery Channel, and FOX. She has worked beside world-renowned chefs like Julia Child, Sara Moulton, Jacques Pepin, Jasper White and countless others. Various organizations have recognized Mary Ann for her efforts to preserve Italian food and cultural traditions: the Italian Trade Commission named her a 2010 Hall of Fame honoree; The President of the Republic of Italy honored her with a knighthood, the Ordine della Stella d’Italia (Order of The Star); She received the Premio Artusi award in Italy for her promotion of Italian regional food. The National Italian American Foundation and The Order of The Sons of Italy in America (OSIA) honored her with Lifetime Achievement Awards in the Culinary & Cultural Arts and St. Anselm College bestowed an honorary doctorate for her dedication to teaching and preserving authentic Italian cuisine.
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