This is one of Sicily's most famous pasta dishes. It's packed with little jewels of contrasting flavor, and topped with toasted bread crumbs. While tomato is not a part of the traditional recipe, it provides a bright colour and flavour balance to the richness of the sardines.
- 1 lb Fresh Sardines
- Flour, for dredging
- Olive oil, for frying
- 1 small Onion, brunoise
- 1/2 lb Fennel bulb, brunoise (save leafy tops for garnish)
- 1 tsp Fennel Seed
- 4 salted Anchovies (rinsed and dried, if desired)
- 2 cloves Garlic, pureed
- 60 g Pine Nuts, toasted
- 60 g dried Currants
- 1 pinch Saffron
- 80 ml White Wine
- 500 ml pureed stewed Tomatoes
- 80 g Breadcrumbs
- 1/2 bunch Italian Parsley
- 1 lb Buccatini
Sauce: In a large pan, saute the onions and fennel in olive oil until softened. Add the fennel seeds, anchovies, and garlic to heat for a minute or two. Then add the toasted pine nuts, currents, saffron, and wine... reduce for a few minutes. Finally add the chopped sardines, tomato puree, and pasta with a little pasta water to thin out the sauce and help it stick.
Bread Crumbs: Heat some olive oil in small pan, then toast the bread crumbs for 1 or 2 minutes until golden. Stir in chopped parsley.
Plating: Use tongs to twirl the buccatini into a nest. Sprinkle with toasted bread crumbs, place a fillet on top, and garnish with some fennel leaves.
Black Cabbage and Ricotta Rotolo with Almond Butter:
This is an elegant and healthy pasta dish that would work well as an appetizer or a brunch nibblet. The recipe calls for black cabbage - a superfood that also goes by the name dinosaur kale - but regular kale or spinach would also work.
- Pasta Dough: 3 eggs, 300g flour, pinch salt, dash olive oil
- 2 bunches Black Cabbage
- Olive Oil
- 1 or 2 cloves Garlic, minced
- 5 sprigs Marjoram, finely chopped
- 100 g Parmigiano Reggiano, grated
- 300 g Ricotta
- fresh Nutmeg
- S+P
- 1 meter Cheesecloth
- 200 g unsalted Butter
- 100 g slivered Almonds
Filling: Wash the kale, remove the ribs, and chop roughly. Blanch the kale in boiling salted water, about 10 minutes, then rinse with cold water. Drain, squeeze, chop, and set aside. Place garlic and marjoram in a cool pan with oil, and heat gradually to infuse the flavors. When softened, add the kale and saute for a few more minutes. Remove from heat and allow it to cool. Mix the kale with parmesan and ricotta, then season to taste with nutmeg, salt, and pepper.
Rolling the Rotolo: Roll out the pasta into 2 or 3 sheets and glue them together width-wise using some water. Place onto parchment paper. Spread the filling evenly over the pasta sheet, keeping a 1-inch perimeter free of filling. Now use gravity to roll it up by lifting the parchment paper gradually. Roll the rotolo in cheese cloth. Use some twine at regular intervals (butchers' knot) to give structure to the roll - don't pull it tight.
Finishing: Simmer the rotolo in a fish poacher or hotel pan with salted water for 20 minutes. Remove, drain, and rest for 5 minutes. Meanwhile brown the butter in a pan over gentle heat with the almonds. Slice the rotolo and drizzle with almond-butter.