Old World Italian Cuisine

by Hugh Dessereau

Here are the classic recipes I promised. The list of pasta dishes is endless and there is only so much space I can devote to this. The recipes I included are, as near as I can tell, truly “old world” authentic recipes. They have been around for generations and have since been messed with by chefs and us normals alike. So much so, they may not be recognizable in its original form.

These great recipes are obviously not cast in concrete. You can adjust them and let the store help you as much as you like. Until I started this article, I would never have called lasagna a stuffed noodle. But then, that is why cooksalot.com was created. Visit it to have more fun learning about the cooking world. Bon Appétit

Lasagna Imbottite
(Stuffed Noodles

In a skillet sauté 1 onion and 1 clove of garlic, both chopped, in 4 tablespoons olive oil until they are golden. Add 1 stalk celery, finely chopped, 4 cups stewed tomatoes, ½ cup tomato paste mixed with ½ cup hot water, and ½ teaspoon sugar, cover the skillet, and simmer gently for about 1 hour, stirring frequently. Adjust the seasoning to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook 1 pound of broad noodles (dry lasagna noodles) in 5 quarts rapidly boiling salted water for about 15 minutes, or until just tender, stirring frequently to prevent the noodles from sticking together. Drain the noodles and arrange them in layers in a baking dish. Cover each layer of noodles with some of the tomato sauce. Cover the sauce with thin slices of Mozzarella cheese and sprinkle the Mozzarella with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake the Lasagna in a moderate oven (350° F) for 20 minutes. Cut into serving portions and serve on individual heated plates, each portion topped with more sauce and grated Parmesan.

Lasagna di Carnevale alla Nappolitana
(Stuffed Noodles with Meat Sauce)

In a skillet sauté a 1-pound pork shoulder in 1 tablespoon olive oil until the meat is brown on all sides. Add 1 small onion and 1 clove of garlic, both chopped, and cook until the onion is golden. Add 1 tablespoon minced parsley, a little salt and pepper, and 1½ cans Italian-style tomato paste mixed with 2 cups of hot water. Cover the skillet and simmer for 2 hours, adding a little water from time to time, if needed. Remove the pork from the sauce and serve it as a separate course or reserve it for another meal.

Cook 1 pound of broad noodles in 5 quarts rapidly boiling salted water for about 15 minutes, or until just tender, stirring frequently to prevent the noodles from sticking together, and drain.

Mix 1 pound ricotta cheese with about 1 tablespoon warm water to make a soft paste.

Arrange the noodles in layers in a baking dish. Cover each layer of noodles with some of the sauce, cover the sauce with a layer of the ricotta paste, and sprinkle the ricotta with grated Parmesan cheese. Bake the Lasagna in a moderate oven (350° F) for 20 minutes. Serve the remaining sauce separately.

Ravioli

Sift 5 cups flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt onto a pastry board and make a well in the center. Put into the well 2 beaten eggs and 1 tablespoon melted butter. Mix the flour into the liquid ingredients, adding enough warm water to make a medium—soft dough. Knead the dough for 2 to 3 minutes, or until it is smooth, divide it in half, and roll out each half on a lightly floured board into identical, thin rectangles.

Combine 1 cup minced cooked chicken, 1 cup chopped cooked spinach, ½-cup dry bread crumbs, 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese, 1 tablespoon chopped parsley, 1 clove of garlic, minced, and 2 beaten eggs. Season the filling with salt and pepper to taste.

Drop the filling by teaspoons 2 inches apart on one sheet of dough. Cover the mounds of filling with the other sheet of dough and press the two sheets gently together around each mound. With a pastry cutter, cut between the mounds to form 2-inch filled squares.

Cook the ravioli in a large quantity of rapidly boiling salted water for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is tender. Remove them carefully with a skimmer, drain and serve in individual heated plates with a spaghetti sauce. Serve grated Parmesan on the side.

Agnolotti

Combine 1 cup minced cooked lamb or pork, 1 cup chopped cooked spinach, 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese, 1 egg yolk, 2 slices each of prosciutto and Italian salami, both chopped, and salt, pepper, and nutmeg to taste.

Roll out ravioli dough on a lightly floured board into two thin, identical. sheets. Drop the filling by teaspoons 2 inches apart on one of the sheets, cover with the other sheet, and press gently around each mound, forming small filled squares. With a pastry cutter, cut the dough between the mounds.

Cook the agnolotti in rapidly boiling salted water for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is tender. Drain and serve in individual heated plates with melted butter and grated Parmesan.

One is tempted to wonder, but never to doubt, whether Italian cookery would be itself if the tomato, the pommaruola as it is often called, had never been combined with pasta. Cappelletti, “little hats,” satisfy the diner, if not the doubt.

Cappelletti alla Romana

Sauté 1 chicken breast gently in 5 tablespoons butter until it is lightly browned on both sides. Season the meat with salt and pepper and cook until it is tender. Chop the chicken breast very finely and mix it thoroughly with ½ pound ricotta cheese, 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, 1 egg and 1 egg yolk, a pinch of nutmeg, a grating of lemon peel, and salt to taste.

Roll out ravioli dough on a lightly floured board into thin sheets and cut the sheets into circles 2½ inches in diameter. Place 1 teaspoon of the filling in the center of each circle and fold in half, pressing the edges firmly together. Join the two extreme ends of each half circle to form a “little hat,” or cappelletto. Cook the capelletti in 5 quarts rapidly boiling salted water for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is tender, drain, and serve with a spaghetti sauce and grated Parmesan.

Conchiglie Ripiene
(Stuffed Shells)

Mix thoroughly 1 pound of ricotta cheese, 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese, ½-teaspoon salt, and 1 beaten egg.

Cook 1 pound of conchiglie in rapidly boiling salted water for about 15 minutes, or until the shells are tender. Drain the shells, cool, and stuff them with the ricotta filling.

Arrange the stuffed shells in a buttered baking dish, pour over them 2 cups tomato sauce or ½-cup melted butter, and sprinkle generously with grated Parmesan. Bake the conchiglie in a moderate oven (350° F) for 20 minutes.

Tomato Sauce

Sauté 2 onions, sliced, and 1 clove of garlic, chopped, in 4 tablespoons olive oil for about 5 minutes, or until the onions are golden. Add 4 cups canned or freshly stewed tomatoes, pressed through a fine sieve, and 3 leaves of sweet basil, shredded, and simmer for about 35 minutes, or until the sauce is thickened, stirring frequently. Add ½ teaspoon sugar and salt and pepper to taste and simmer for 15 minutes longer.

Manicotti
(“Little Muffs”)
(Note: Sometimes confused with cannelloni)

Sift 4 cups Hour and ½ teaspoon salt onto a pastry board and make a well in the center. A In the well put 1 tablespoon soft butter and 3 beaten eggs and gradually work the flour into the center ingredients, adding enough warm water to make a medium-soft dough. Knead the dough for about 3 minutes, or until it is smooth. Roll the dough out thinly on a lightly floured board and cut it into rectangles 4 by 6 inches. Spread 1½ tablespoons ricotta cheese on each rectangle and roll it up like a jelly roll. Moisten the edges of the dough and seal the rolls securely along the seam and ends to prevent the filling seeping out.

Cook the manicotti in a large quantity of rapidly boiling salted water for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is tender. Remove the “little rnuffs” carefully with a flat skimmer and arrange several side by side on individual serving plates. Cover the manicotti with a spaghetti sauce, sprinkle with a little finely chopped sweet basil, and bake in a hot oven (4OO° F) for 10 minutes. Serve with grated Romano cheese.

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