Cook Like a Rock Star (23 page)

FOR THE MEATBALLS

Extra virgin olive oil

2 onions, cut into ¼-inch dice

Kosher salt

2 cloves garlic, smashed and chopped

Pinch of crushed red pepper

½ pound ground beef

½ pound ground veal

½ pound ground pork

2 large eggs

1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano, plus more as needed

¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

1 cup bread crumbs

Spaghetti or other pasta

Big fat finishing oil

FOR THE SAUCE

1
Coat a large saucepan with olive oil and add the pancetta; bring to medium heat and cook the pancetta for 6 to 8 minutes. Add the onions and red pepper and season generously with salt; cook until the onions are soft and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently.

2
Add the tomatoes to the pot along with 2 cups of water, adding up to another cup as needed for consistency during the cooking process. Season generously with salt and taste the sauce. Tomatoes need a lot of salt to bring out their best flavor, so don’t be shy here. Cook the sauce for 2 to 3 hours, stirring occasionally and tasting frequently. You’ll probably need to reseason along the way—that’s just how this sauce rolls.

3
Use the sauce right away or let it cool and store in the refrigerator for a few days; it also freezes really well.

FOR THE MEATBALLS

1
Coat a large sauté pan with olive oil, add the onions, and bring to medium-high heat. Season the onions generously with salt and cook until soft and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and red pepper and sauté for another 2 to 3 minutes; turn off the heat and let everything cool.

2
In a large bowl combine the beef, veal, pork, eggs, Parmigiano, parsley, and bread crumbs and season with salt. Using your hands, squish the mixture well to combine. Add the onions and about ½ cup water. Squish, squish, and squish until everything is well combined—the mixture should be quite wet. To check your seasoning, make a 1- to 2-inch tester patty out of the mix; bring a small sauté pan to medium-high heat, add a bit of olive oil, and cook the patty until it’s done. Taste it to make sure the seasoning is on the money (it’s a travesty to have an underseasoned ball, so don’t skip this step!).

3
Preheat the oven to 350°F.

4
Using damp hands, shape the meat into balls, whatever size you like—some people like big balls, some people like small balls. I like them a little bigger than a golf ball. Put the meatballs on a rimmed baking sheet and bake them for about 15 minutes or until they are cooked all the way through. Then, coat a large sauté pan with olive oil and bring to medium-high heat. Brown the meatballs on all sides. If using them right away, toss them in your big pot of sauce with spaghetti, or whatever pasta you like. Drizzle with big fat finishing oil and sprinkle with Parm, toss vigorously, and serve. If you’re not using them right away, freeze them on a baking sheet and then toss them in a baggie.

Magnifico meatbawls!

If you have a pot of sauce, you can always pull these meatballs out of the freezer & toss them straight into the sauce—no need to defrost them first!

SERVES: 4 TO 6 • TIME: ABOUT 45 MINUTES WITH PREMADE PASTA DOUGH

Where I come from, corn is the epitome of a summer vegetable; we used to drive out to the fields to get ours fresh and just leave our money in a can on the side of the road. So in this dish I combine corn with lovely little cherry tomatoes sautéed until they burst out of excitement, letting their delightful juices flow! Add some bacon and this sauce just steps up, pokes you, and says, “Hi, I’m summer, glad to see you!”

MISE EN PLACE

4 ears of corn, shucked

Extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

¼ pound slab bacon, cut into ¼-inch dice

3 cloves garlic, smashed

Pinch of crushed red pepper

1 pint heirloom cherry tomatoes, assorted colors

1½ cups
chicken or veggie stock

1 recipe
Chef Anne’s All-Purpose Pasta Dough
, cut into tagliatelle, or 1 pound fresh tagliatelle

1½ cups baby arugula

Big fat finishing oil

½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano

1
Preheat a grill or broiler.

2
Rub the corn with olive oil and sprinkle with salt. Broil or grill the corn until charred on all sides. Cut the kernels off the cob, then run a knife down the cob again to get the remaining sweet bits.

3
Coat a large wide pan with olive oil. Toss in the bacon, garlic, and red pepper; bring to medium-high heat. When the garlic turns golden and is very aromatic, 2 to 3 minutes, remove it from the pan and ditch it—it has fulfilled its garlic destiny. Add the cherry tomatoes to the pan and roll them around until coated. Add 1 cup of the stock, season with salt, reduce the heat to medium, and let the tomatoes cook until they start to burst, 8 to 10 minutes.

4
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the corn to the pan with tomatoes and bacon and stir to combine; add another ½ cup stock if the liquid level is very low.

5
Drop the pasta in the boiling water and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until it’s tender but toothsome.

6
Drain the pasta and add it to the veggies along with about ½ cup reserved cooking water; toss vigorously to combine. Remove the pan from the heat, toss in the arugula, drizzle with the big fat finishing oil, and sprinkle with the Parmigiano. Serve immediately.

I love being corny!

Tagliolini with Salsa Cruda & Ricotta Salata

SERVES: 6 TO 8 • TIME: ABOUT 1½ HOURS WITH PREMADE PASTA DOUGH, MOSTLY UNATTENDED

I first encountered this sauce while working in Umbria, and it’s one of my favorite summertime pastas. To me, this is Mother Nature’s last blast, her crescendo before fall. This is where you take everything she has to give, all those glorious summer ingredients, and toss them together to let the wonderful flavors marry. Then you just barely heat everything up, never actually letting the veggies cook, so they maintain their fresh flavors. Punctuate this with a salty grate of ricotta salata and say, “Mmmmm …”

MISE EN PLACE

2 pounds heirloom tomatoes, assorted colors preferably, stemmed, seeded, and cut into ¼-inch dice

1 red onion, cut into ¼-inch dice

1 zucchini, cut into ¼-inch dice

1 bunch of pencil asparagus, cut into ¼-inch rounds

2 cloves garlic, smashed and finely chopped

5 sprigs of fresh oregano, leaves chopped

8 basil leaves, cut into a
chiffonade

¼ cup red wine vinegar

Pinch of crushed red pepper

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

Kosher salt

1 recipe
Chef Anne’s All-Purpose Pasta Dough
, cut into tagliolini or 1 pound fresh tagliolini

Big fat finishing oil

1 cup coarsely grated ricotta salata (dried salted ricotta cheese)

1
In a large bowl, combine the tomatoes, onion, zucchini, asparagus, garlic, oregano, basil, vinegar, red pepper, and olive oil and season generously with salt; taste to make sure it’s delicious and adjust the seasoning if needed. Let the sauce sit for at least 1 hour to allow the flavors to marry.

2
Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil.

3
Add two-thirds of the sauce to a large wide pot and bring to medium-high heat—the idea is to heat up the sauce without really cooking it so you maintain the raw integrity of the veggies.

4
Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until it is tender but still toothsome, 2 to 3 minutes—you don’t want any limp noodles. Drain the pasta and add it to the sauce, along with ½ cup reserved pasta cooking water, and stir vigorously. If the pasta needs it, add the reserved sauce (if it’s not needed, then you have lunch for tomorrow!). Cook the pasta together with the sauce until the pasta water has evaporated. Give the pasta a drizzle of big fat finishing oil and stir vigorously again. Divide among individual serving dishes and top with the ricotta salata.

Summer in a bowl!

Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe Pesto & Sausage