Just what we need are simple-to-prepare and delicious pasta dishes. Here's an example of three lesser-known pasta dishes from Naples and Rome. Spaghetti alla Scarperiello - spaghetti with tomatoes and basil; Pasta alla Zozzona - a Roman dish with pasta and sausage filling, guanciale, cheese, and eggs. Heaven! And a very simple dish of Pasta e Patate - where the creaminess of the dish is created by bringing pasta and potatoes together! Buon appetito!
Spaghetti alla Scarperiello
A Neapolitan first course: Spaghetti alla Scarperiello. Cherry tomatoes, cheese and plenty of fresh basil. The recipe for Scarperiello, a quick and tasty pasta dish, born decades ago in the alleys of the Quartieri Spagnoli in Naples. It was the era of the old shoemakers who were repaid for their craftsmanship even with what they had in their pantry. So with the pieces of cheese available, the tomato sauce left over from the day before (the Neapolitan ragù) and the basil leaves, a dish with a simple and genuine seasoning was created, quick to make and tasty. Now this peasant dish is en vogue! Seasoned Pecorino and Parmesan which will envelop the spaghetti with its creamy sauce. Scarpariello pasta is a true delicacy, thanks mainly to the quality of the ingredients used: in some parts of Campania it is also prepared with the scialatielli pasta format and with yellow cherry tomatoes.
Ingredients:
Spaghettoni 320 gRummo; Datterini tomatoes 500 g; Pecorino Romano DOP to grate 30 g; Parmigiano Reggiano DOP to grate 30 g; Abundant basil 1 sprig; ½ long fresh chili pepper; Extra virgin olive oil 70 g; Garlic 1 clove; Salt to taste
Preparation:
To prepare the Scarperiello pasta, start by placing a pan with water on the heat to cook the pasta; add salt to the boil. Take the datterini tomatoes: wash them and divide them in half, then take the long fresh chilli pepper, trim it and open it to remove the seeds; then cut it into strips and mince it. Also grate the Pecorino Romano and the Parmigiano Reggiano DOP. Pour the extra virgin olive oil into a large pan and heat; add the chopped chilli pepper and the whole peeled garlic so it will be easier to remove. Fry for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally; then add the datterini tomatoes and cook over medium heat for about 10 minutes. In the meantime, boil the spaghetti until al dente. Once the datterini sauce is ready, salt it, remove the garlic and add part of the basil leaves. Add a ladle of cooking water to create a delicious cream. Drain the spaghetti al dente, keeping a couple of ladles of cooking water and pour them directly into the pan with the seasoning. Over a medium-low heat, finish cooking in the pan, stirring the spaghetti with the sauce, adding cooking water as needed because the sauce is creamy. Turn off the heat, add the Pecorino and the Parmigiano Reggiano DOP grated several times, alternating with more cooking water as needed,stirring constantly to prevent the cheese from starting to string. Flavor again with some basil leaves. Serve the Pasta alla Scarperiello immediately, adding more fresh basil on each plate.
Pasta alla Zozzona
Pasta alla Zozzona may not be a pasta dish everyone knows - but once you've tasted it, you will fall in love with it! Pecorino romano, egg yolks, bacon, sausage and cherry tomatoes are the ingredients of this Lazio culinary traditional recipe. Zozzona means dirty but is referring to the robust and rich ingredients in this recipe. Pasta alla zozzona is a feast for the palate, the truest celebration of Romanity at the table, a super recipe for those who love strong flavors and rich dishes!
Ingredients:
Rigatoni 320 g; Guanciale 200 g; Sausage (pork only) 250 g; Pecorino Romano DOP to grate 60 g; canned cherry tomatoes 350 g; Extra virgin olive oil to taste; Yolks (of medium eggs) 4
Preparation:
To prepare the pasta alla zozzona, boil the water for cooking the pasta and add salt to the boil. Take the bacon, slice it and cut into 2 strips. Then remove the casing from the sausage and cut it into chunks. Pour a drizzle of oil into a pan and add the sausage and the bacon, leaving them to brown for about 15 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. When they are well browned, also pour the cherry tomatoes into the sauce and leave to cook for another 10 minutes with the lid on. Pour the egg yolks and 60 g of grated Pecorino romano into a small bowl. Mix them well to create a cream. Boil the pasta ; then add a ladle of cooking water to the cream with egg yolks and Pecorino cheese to loosen the cream obtained. Drain the pasta al dente, pour it into the pan with the seasoning mix well and remove from the heat. Also pour in the Pecorino cream and egg yolks, mix and finish creaming by adding approximately another 40 g of Pecorino before serving your Pasta alla Zozzona.
Pasta e Patate
If you love home-made dishes, and if you are a fan of comfort food, this recipe of Pasta e Patate - Pasta and Potatoes cannot be missing from your cooking menu! Like many traditional poor dishes, pasta and potatoes lends itself to infinite variations and is often enriched with other ingredients such as bacon, cheese, peas or even seafood: Campania has even its own special version with Neapolitan-style pasta and potatoes. However, here we have chosen the simple version: the pasta and potatoes, both rich in starch, form together a velvety cream and just with a few drops of Extra Virgin Olive oil - it is just divine.
Ingredients:
Pipe Rigate 250 g; yellow potatoes 700 g; Thyme to taste; Extra virgin olive oil 30 g; Salt to taste; Black pepper to taste; Shallot 40 g; Rosemary to taste.
Preparation:
To prepare the pasta and potatoes, first peel the potatoes, then wash and dry them carefully with a clean cloth and cut them into cubes. Clean the shallot and chop it finely, then also chop the rosemary. Boil a pan with plenty of water, add salt when it boils, which will then be used to boil the pasta and to add the sauce. Heat the extra virgin olive oil in a pan, add the shallot; and the chopped rosemary and let them brown for a few minutes, being careful not to burn them. Now add the diced potatoes and cook them, stirring often and adding a ladle of boiling water at a time when necessary; it will take about 20 minutes. When the potatoes are almost cooked, season with salt and pepper. In the meantime, the water to cook the pasta will have come to the boil, so cook it, then drain it al dente directly into the pan with the potatoes. Mix well and finish cooking by adding a little pasta cooking water as needed: combining pasta and potatoes in the same pan will create a delicious cream thanks to the starch released by the pasta and potatoes. Finally, season with a few leaves of thyme and pepper to taste, turn off the heat and season with a drizzle of raw extra virgin olive oil. Your Pasta e Patate is best eaten while still hot.
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