Italian Cookbooks Cooking Project 2014 -- Book 2

It might have been a mistake to chose this next cookbook, because I want to try everything! I just purchased this book in November and I had not yet really read it.  I save these precious Italian books to savor.

I opened 'È Pronto!' by Benedetta Parodi, published in 2013 by Rizzoli. 

I turned each page and with sticky tape, marked interesting recipes. I had to bypass some for lack of ingredients, like fresh porcini mushrooms, lardo, octopus and cheeses which I cannot buy here. Anything with fresh peas too, which are on my life-long, refuse to eat list. Even eating in Cremona, I have to push those pearls to the side. 

I received my first Benedetta cookbook as a gift from Marta and Rosa in Cremona. Benedetta cooks in a dress and heels and makes it all look so easy and delicious. She's always happy and organized. 

Benedetta has her own television show and website and a blog in the Corriere della Sera newspaper.

http://www.benedettaparodi.it/

http://benedettaparodiblog.corriere.it/

This cookbook is amazing. Each left sided page contains a picture of the recipe shown to the right. 250 recipes and most all of them appeal to me. 

I've marked over twenty recipes which look interesting. I'll give myself two weeks with this book and try as many as I can fit in. 

Today is Monday. Checking my freezer supplies, I found just the perfect recipe to make right away for lunch.  I have a small amount of homemade ricotta cheese and a piece of real guanciale, which I buy at McCall's Meats and Fish Company, in Los Angeles. 

I made a serving for one and it was fabulous. So simple. 

Penne alla gricia with ricotta

Serves 4

350 g mezze penne pasta

160 g guanciale, cut into small pieces

125 g fresh ricotta cheese

Grated pecorino, to taste

Extra virgin olive oil

Salt

Bring water to a boil and begin cooking the penne pasta. 

In a saucepan, sauté the guanciale pieces in a little olive oil, taking care not to let it smoke or burn. Drain off extra fat. 

Drain pasta, setting aside some of the pasta water.  Add pasta back to the guanciale and stir in the ricotta, over low heat. Add pasta water, as needed, to make a creamy sauce. Stir vigorously. 

Turn off fire and add grated cheese. Serve immediately. 

Penne alla gricia con ricotta

per 4 personne

350 g di mezze penne

160 g di guanciale

125 g di ricotta

pecorino qb

olio extravergine

Sale

Mettere a cuocere le mezze penne e intanto risolare in padella il guanciale a pezzetti con l'olio. Una volta pronta la pasta, scolarla e ripassarla in padella con il guanciale, farla insaporire, unire la ricotta continuando a mescolare e se necessario aggiungere acqua di cottura.  A fuoco spento mantecare con il pecorino grattugiato. 

~~.~~.~~

I looked up the word 'gricia' and found this interesting information. 

From the New York Times

http://www.nytimes.com/2000/11/08/dining/the-minimalist-three-way-pasta.html

THE MINIMALIST; Three-Way Pasta

By Mark Bittman

Published: November 8, 2000

As popular as spaghetti alla carbonara may be, most American cooks don't realize that its essential element is meat. The crispy bits of cured pork that elevate the eggy sauce are actually the building blocks for three of the great classic pastas made in and around Rome.

The most basic of them, pasta alla gricia, contains no more than the meat and grated sharp cheese. With eggs added to the sauce, it becomes the familiar spaghetti alla carbonara, named for the charcoal makers who created the dish. And if you add the sweetness of cooked onions and the acidity of tomatoes, you have pasta all'amatriciana, from the town of Amatricia.

For years, authors of cookbooks and articles about Italian cooking suggested that the ''genuine'' meat for these recipes was pancetta: pork belly that is salted and cured but not smoked. Pancetta is available in any decent Italian deli and many specialty stores, although bacon -- which is also pork belly, cured and smoked -- is an adequate substitute.

But in Italy the first choice for these dishes is guanciale, which is also salted and cured but not smoked. It is made with pig jowl, a fatty and exceptionally delicious cut.

Those lucky enough to be in Rome can find guanciale not only in salumerias but also in supermarkets. In New York, it's a little harder to find, but worth the effort. You can buy guanciale at a few specialty markets, including Salumeria Biellese (376 Eighth Avenue at 29th Street; 212-736-7376), a 75-year-old institution that also produces good pancetta and sausages.

Guanciale is typically sold in pieces weighing a pound or a little more. Because it is cured until nearly dry, it will keep for months, and you can hack off a bit anytime you want to make one of these dishes.
 

All these sauces are great, if different, with any of the three meats.

As for the cheese, which is the second dominant flavor in each sauce, pecorino Romano is essential to pasta alla gricia, Parmesan is the most common cheese in carbonara and the amatriciana-style sauce is at home with either.

 

But, again, you can choose whatever you like -- no one is looking.

 

PASTA ALLA GRICIA

Time: 30 minutes

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup minced guanciale, pancetta or bacon (about 1/4 pound)

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 pound linguine or other long, thin pasta

1/2 cup grated pecorino Romano, or more to taste.

1. Bring a large pot of water to a rolling boil. In a small saucepan, combine olive oil and meat, and turn heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until nicely browned, about 10 minutes. Turn off heat.

2. Salt water, and cook pasta until tender but not mushy. Reserve about a cup of water before draining pasta.

3. Toss drained pasta with meat and its juices; stir in cheese. If mixture is dry, add a little of the pasta cooking water (or a little olive oil). Season with plenty of black pepper, and serve.

Yield: 3 servings as a main course or 6 as a first course.

Variations: 

Spaghetti alla carbonara: While pasta is cooking, beat 3 eggs in a large warmed bowl. Stir in about 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan and the meat and its juices. When pasta is done, drain and toss with egg mixture. If the dressed pasta is dry, add a little reserved cooking water. Add plenty of black pepper and more Parmesan to taste, and serve.

Pasta all'amatriciana: Remove pancetta with a slotted spoon and, in the juices left behind, saute a sliced medium onion over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until well softened, about 10 minutes. Turn off heat, and let mixture cool a bit to avoid spattering. Stir in 3 cups chopped canned tomatoes and turn heat back to medium. Cook sauce, stirring occasionally, while pasta cooks. Drain, and toss with tomato sauce, reserved meat, and at least 1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese.