Pasta recipes

BY ERICA MARCUS

April 29, 2008

WHOLE-WHEAT PASTA WITH BROCCOLI RABE AND CAPACOLLA

On her culinary Web site, ericademane.com, cookbook author Erica De Mane has lately been wrestling with classic rustic Italian cuisine -- how to make it healthier without sacrificing its soul. This recipe, which I adapted slightly, is a take on one of De Mane's all-time favorites, pasta with broccoli rabe and sausage. Don't be tempted to skip the fennel seeds or lemon zest; they add a haunting, unmistakably Southern Italian quality.

Salt

2 bunches broccoli rabe, well stemmed and roughly chopped

1 pound whole-wheat pasta

Extra-virgin olive oil

3 cloves garlic, very thinly sliced

1 heaping tablespoon fennel seeds

Freshly ground pepper

4 slices hot capacolla, stacked and cut first into strips, then, across the strips, into squares

Grated zest from 1 large lemon

Pecorino cheese for grating

1. Set up a large pot of pasta cooking water, salt it generously and bring it to a boil. Add the broccoli rabe, and blanch it for a minute. Scoop it from the water with a large strainer, transfer to a colander, and run it under cold water to stop the cooking and to preserve its nice green color. Squeeze out all the excess moisture. Set aside.

2. Bring the pasta water back to a boil. Drop in the pasta, and give it a quick little stir to make sure its not sticking together.

3. While the pasta cooks, in a skillet large enough to hold all the pasta and sauce ingredients, heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and fennel seeds, and sauté until the garlic just starts to turn golden, about a minute. Add the broccoli rabe, a good grinding of pepper, a pinch of salt and sauté for about 2 minutes, until everything is well integrated and hot. Add the capacolla.

4. When al dente, drain the pasta and add it to the skillet, reserving a cup of cooking water. Add the lemon zest, and toss well over medium heat, to coat the pasta and blend all the flavors (this skillet toss is essential for creating deep flavor in the pasta, and it also allows you to use less oil, since everything gets well mixed and coated). Use some of the reserved pasta-cooking water if mixture is too dry. Turn off the heat, add a drizzle of fresh olive oil and a good grating of pecorino. Toss again, taste for salt and transfer to a warmed serving bowl. Serve right away, with more pecorino. Makes 4 servings.

PASTA WITH WALNUTS AND PARSLEY

This quick-and-easy recipe is adapted from one in Ellie

Krieger's book, "The Food You Crave" (Taunton, $28).

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 (16-ounce) box whole-wheat pasta

1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil

4 to 6 cloves garlic, minced

2/3 cup choppped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Have all ingredients measured out and near the stove. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to boil.

2. In a large skillet over medium-high, toast the walnuts until fragrant, stirring frequently, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove walnuts from skillet and set aside.

3. Add pasta to water. While it cooks, add olive oil and garlic to skillet and stir over low heat until the garlic is soft and fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes (be careful not to burn it). When pasta is just short of al dente, fish it out of the water using tongs or a spider (Chinese strainer), and add to skillet along with 1/2 cup of the pasta-cooking water, all but 3 tablespoons of the walnuts, the parsley, salt and pepper. Toss to combine, cooking over low heat for 1 to 2 minutes. Turn off heat. Add 3/4 cup of the Parmesan and toss to combine. Pour into a serving bowl, or divide among 4 individual bowls. Top with the remaining grated cheese, the reserved walnuts and more parsley, and serve. Makes 4 servings.