Che sia stato Marco Polo al ritorno dalla Cina nel 1295 ad aver introdotto in Occidente
la pasta è solo una leggenda.
Tale leggenda è nata negli Stati Uniti d'America sul Macaroni Journal (pubblicato da
una associazione di industriali con lo scopo di rendere la pasta familiare ai
consumatori americani e favorita dai circoli governativi impegnati a sostenere la
coltivazione del grano duro)
A sostegno della tesi c'era che, tra le meraviglie del mondo descritte nel Milione,
parlando del reame di Fansur, Marco Polo scrive che Qui à una grande maraviglia, che
ci àn farina d'àlbori, che sono àlbori grossi e ànno la buccia sottile, e sono tutti pieni
dentro di farina; e di quella farin[a] si fa molti mangiar di pasta e buoni, ed io piú volte
ne mangiai a cui, nelle note alla prima versione italiana, Giovan Battista Ramusio
aggiunge che la farina purgata et mondata, che rimane, s'adopra, et si fanno di quella
lasagne, et diverse vivande di pasta, delle quali ne ha mangiato più volte il detto Marco
Polo, et ne portò seco alcune a Venezia, qual è come il pane d'orzo, et di quel
sapore....
Pertanto gli americani, come dice Giuseppe Prezzolino, «non hanno esitato a prender
il testo del Ramusio, han dato una spintarella... e l'han fatto diventare la prova»
dell'importazione dalla Cina degli spaghetti.
« Chi mai fosse tra i ghiottoniL'inventor dei maccheroniVi
son dispute infiniteNé decisa è ancor la lite »
( G. Columbro, Le muse familiari, in «Molini d'Italia», n. 4,
1984)
Preparazione della pasta, Tacuinum sanitatis Casanatense (XIV secolo)
Il vocabolo pasta viene dal tardo latino păsta(m), dal greco πάστα con significato di 'farina con salsa'
che deriva dal verbo pássein cioè 'impastare'. Si attesta a partire dal 1310 anche se a cercare le origini
della pasta, chiamata con altri nomi, si può tornare indietro fin quasi all'età neolitica (circa 8000 a.C.)
quando l'uomo cominciò la coltivazione dei cereali che ben presto imparò a macinare, impastare con
acqua e cuocere o seccare al sole per poterli conservare a lungo. La pasta è infatti un cibo universale di
cui si trovano tracce storiche in tutto il continente euroasiatico. Acquisisce una posizione
particolarmente importante in Italia e in Cina dove si sviluppano due prestigiosi filoni di tradizione
gastronomica che si completano a vicenda ma di cui rimane difficile stabilire i rapporti proprio per la
complessità dei percorsi intermedi.
La testimonianza più antica, databile intorno ai 4000 anni fa, è data
da un piatto di spaghetti di miglio rinvenuti nel nord-ovest della Cina
presso Lajia sotto tre metri di sedimenti. L'invenzione cinese viene
tuttavia considerata indipendente da quella occidentale perché
all'epoca i cinesi non conoscevano il frumento caratteristico delle
produzioni europee e arabe.
In verità possiamo trovare tracce di paste alimentari già tra gli
Etruschi, Arabi, Greci e Romani.
Chiara la testimonianza per gli Etruschi fatta a Cerveteri dalla tomba
della Grotta Bella, risalente al IV secolo a.C., dove alcuni rilievi
sono a raffigurare degli strumenti ancora oggi in uso per la
produzione casalinga della pasta come spianatoia, mattarello e
rotella per tagliare.
Per il mondo greco e quello latino numerose sono le citazioni fra gli
autori classici, fra cui Aristofane e Orazio, che usano i termini
làganon (greco) e laganum (latino) per indicare un impasto di acqua
e farina, tirato e tagliato a striscie. Queste lagane, ancora oggi in uso
nel sud d'Italia (da cui anche laina), considerate inizialmente cibo dei
poveri, acquisiscono tanta dignità da entrare nel quarto libro del De
re coquinaria del leggendario ghiottone Apicio. Egli ne descrive
minuziosamente i condimenti tralasciando le istruzioni per la loro
preparazione, facendo supporre che fosse ampiamente conosciuta.
Per gli Arabi, Ziryab, musicista, ma anche appassionato gastronomo
del IX secolo d.C., descrive impasti di acqua e farina assimilabili
alle paste. Ne Il diletto per chi desidera girare il mondo o Libro di
Ruggero pubblicato nel 1154, Al-Idrisi, geografo di Ruggero II di
Sicilia, descrive Trabia, un paese a 30 km da Palermo, come una
zona con molti mulini, dove si fabbricava una pasta a forma di fili
chiamata itrya (dall'arabo itryah che significa "focaccia tagliata a
strisce"), che veniva spedita con navi in abbondanti quantità per tutta
l'area del Mediterraneo sia musulmano sia cristiano dando origine ad
un commercio molto attivo. Questa è la prima testimonianza scritta
sulla pasta che poi entrerà nella storia.
Carbonara spaghetti
Note: a delicious, creamy first course that you can taste in Rome,
at the restaurants;
but you can realize them at home too! Follow our suggestions.
Serves 4
Ingredients
•350 g (12 oz) Italian spaghetti
•100 g (3 1/2 oz) bacon, cubed
•2 eggs
•4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
•Grated Pecorino cheese
•Grated Parmesan cheese
•4 tablespoons light cream (single
cream)
•Salt
•Freshly ground pepper, if you like
Level:
easy recipe
•Time:
preparation: 5 minutes
cooking: 20 minutes
•The wine:
Frascati Secco (a white wine
from Italy)
Traditional recipe
Cook spaghetti in a large kettle of boiling salted water according to package directions, until
al dente. Pasta must be al dente because you have to finish cooking it in the sauce.
In the meantime, simmer bacon in a wide frying pan with the olive oil, stirring, until it browns
on all sides.
Beat the eggs with a pinch of salt, the grated cheeses and light cream. Season to taste with
pepper, if you like.
Drain spaghetti very well, pour into the frying pan and stir in order to flavor pasta. Then add
the beaten eggs. Stir accurately, keeping the pan lightly lifted over the flame to avoid eggs
cook: they must warm up, not cook! The secret of this creamy first course lies in this step.
Serve immediately.
For a faster and lighter recipe
- For a low fat recipe we simmered bacon in a
frying pan with a few drops of water without
olive oil and we used vegetable light cream.
- We used red chilli instead of freshly ground
pepper, adding it to the simmering bacon.
A little history
The origin of this recipe is uncertain. Somebody says it was
taken from Umbria to Rome by revolutionaries in the nineteenth
century; other people say it belongs to a Neapolitan noble,
Ippolito Cavalcanti, who published this recipe in a book of yours.
But the great surprise for you is another version: this dish could
derive from the union of ingredients and ideas between the
U.S.A. soldiers, arrived in Rome in 1944, and the chefs of the
local restaurants. The soldiers had got bacon and powdered
eggs, the chefs their fantasy and so this creamy first course was
born.
Ingredients
•400g spaghetti
•500g small tomatoes (could
substituted by San Marzano
tomatoes in the right season)
•2 cloves garlic
•1 and 1/2 decilitre extra virgin
olive oil
•handful of basil
•salt.
Procedure
Frizzle garlic with oil and add chopped tomatoes, a pinch of salt.
Cook and remove garlic at the end. Boil spaghetti and drain slightly
undercooked, pour into the sauce, add basil and mix. Serve hot with
some more fresh basil.
Ingredients
•320g linguine,
•300g small tomatoes,
•60g black olives,
•30g capers,
•30g salty anchovies,
•1 and 1/2 decilitre extra virgin
olive oil,
•2 cloves garlic,
•chopped parsley,
• red hot pepper,
•salt
Procedure
Frizzle garlic and ret hot pepper in oil, add anchovies (unsalted and filleted) melt at
low heat. Add chopped tomatoes and cook rapidly at high heat, mix with pitted olives
and capers. Boil linguine and drain slightly undercooked, pour into the sauce, mix and
complete with chopped parsley.
Ingredients
•350g linguine
•4 big rock crabs
•250g small tomatoes
•1 clove garlic
•1 and 1/2 decilitre extra virgin
olive oil
•chopped parsley
•red hot pepper
•salt.
Procedure
Mash crab's carapace and claws, rinse if necessary. Frizzle garlic and red hot pepper in oil, add
crabs and frizzle both sides at high heat. Add 1 stirring spoon of water and tomatoes. Cook. Boil
linguine and drain slightly underco
Ingredients
•350g mezzanelli (typical neapolitan
pasta),
•100g bacon fat,
•50g lard,
•150g small tomatoes,
• 40g pecorino cheese,
•1 clove garlic,
•some onion,
•basil, salt and pepper.
Procedure
Chopped bacon fat with garlic. Soften onions with the melted lard at low heat, add
bacon fat and garlic, and then when melted, add chopped tomatoes and cook. Boil
pasta and drain slightly undercooked. Pour into the sauce and sautè. Complete with
basil, ground black pepper and pecorino cheese. Serve hot.
Ingredients
Notice that this recipe is for 10 serves
in order to have a best result, since
it's a traditional dish commonly
prepared for some festivities.
Ingredients are:
•600-700g pasta for lasagna
•450g meat balls
•500g ricotta cheese
•450g well dry buffalo mozzarella or
fior di latte cheese
•500g "cervellatine" (thin sausages)
•abundant ragù
•250g parmesan and pecorino cheese
•ground black pepper (small quantity)
Procedure
Boil pasta, drain and season it with some cheese, salt and
pepper. Fry meatballs; frizzle sausages, cool and cut them into
slices. Cut mozzarella in pieces and dissolve ricotta with part of
ragù. Lay ragù on the bottom of a greased wide baking pan,
superpose with a layer of lasagna in order to cover the bottom
and borders (let pour out enough lasagna from the borders to
cover at the end). Lay ragù and ricotta cheese, fior di late or
mozzarella, meatballs and slices of sausage, sprinkle with
Parmesan cheese, a pinch of pepper and add some more ragù.
Repeat lasagna layer and filling. At the end complete with the
layer of lasagna (the one pouring out from borders), ragù and
Parmesan cheese. Bake until a brown crust comes out and
lasagna is compact. Cool down, pull out of the baking pan and
serve with pecorino flakes and some more ragù.
Ingredients
•400 g "paccheri",
• 500g ragù,
•40g parmesan cheese or
"pecorino",
•salt.
Procedure
Boil pasta in abundant salty water, drain and pour pasta in boiling hot ragù. Mix and
serve with grated parmesan cheese.
Ingredients
For dumplings:
•400g potatoes and 150g flour.
For seasoning:
•500g ragu (a thick tomato sauce
could also be used, even if it's not
the same)
•60g pecorino or parmesan grated
cheese
•fresh basil
•ground black pepper.
Variant:
•dried pieces of mozzarella can also
be used.
Procedure
Bring potatoes to a boil, and when cooked, peel
and sift. Let absorb the flour and knead the dough
until it gets homogeneous. Divide and form long
sticks, cut them into cylindrical pieces, give their
characteristic shape with a fork or a utensil
provided for that purpose. Drop into boiling and
salty water and drain dumplings when float. For
seasoning: mix dumplings with hot ragu, flavour
with a pinch of pepper, and add basil and cheese.
Pour into little and slightly greased pans and bake
au gratin at 180°c. Complete with cheese flakes
and fresh basil.
Ingredients
•320/400g pasta "paccheri",
•700g beef,
•1k onions,
•2 carrots,
•1 stalk of celery,
•4 small tomatoes (purist prefer
1 teaspoon of tomato paste),
•1 decilitre extra virgin olive oil,
50g lard,
•1 decilitre white wine,
•40g parmesan or pecorino
cheese,
•salt and pepper
Procedure
It's important to point out that "alla genovese" is not referred to Genoa city,
but maybe, to the name of the Neapolitan cook who created this sauce.
Procedure
Tie beef; cut onion into thin slices, chop carrots and
celery. Put everything in a pan with oil, lard, chopped
tomatoes (or with the paste dissolved in some water), a
pinch of salt and pepper. Cover and cook at low heat for
at least one hour, until the vegetables are quite
dissolved, stir from time to time. Uncover and pour
white wine little by little and water until getting a thick,
dark and bright cream. Boil pasta and season with the
sauce; serve with a sparkling of cheese. Meat could be
served as a main course.
INGREDIENTI
•1 tablespoon olive oil
•1/2 cup finely chopped onion
•1 tablespoon minced garlic
•1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1 can tomatoes -- chopped (28 oz.)
•1 pound linguine -- cooked according to -- package directions
•1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat.
Add onion; cook 5 minutes until softened.
Stir in garlic, red pepper and salt; cook 30 seconds.
Add tomatoes and their liquid; cook 15 minutes.
Toss sauce with hot pasta and parsley in large serving bowl.
Makes 4 servings.
PER SERVING Calories 505 Total Fat 6 g Saturated Fat 1 g Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 607 mg Carbohydrates 96 g Protein 17 g
Recipe By: Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone; Serving Size: 6
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons margarine
1 large bunch scallions, including half of the greens -- thinly sliced
2 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon fresh thyme, sage, or tarragon -- finely chopped salt and
freshly ground pepper to taste
2 pounds fresh asparagus -- tough ends removed
1 pound linguine
4 tablespoons pine nuts -- toasted
3 tablespoons fresh parsley -- chopped
2 tablespoons fresh snipped chives, plus blossoms -- if available
While water is heating for the pasta, heat half the oil and
butter in a wide skillet over low heat.
Add the scallions, lemon zest, thyme, and a few pinches of
salt and cook slowly, stirring occasionally.
Meanwhile, slice 3-inch tips off the asparagus, the slice the
remaining stalks diagonally or make a roll cut.
When the water boils, salt it, add the asparagus, and cook
until partially tender, about 3 to 4 minutes.
Scoop it out, add it to the scallions, and continue cooking.
Cook the pasta, then add it to the pan with some of the water
clinging to the strands.
Raise the heat and stir in the remaining oil, the pine nuts,
parsley, chives, pepper to taste, and a few tablespoons of
cheese, if desired.
Divide among pasta plates, grate a little cheese over each
portion, and garnish with the chive blossoms (if available).
Serving Size: 4
•1 pound very ripe tomatoes -- chopped
•6 large cloves garlic -- minced
•1/4 cup fresh basil -- chopped
•2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
•salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
•pinch red pepper flakes
•12 ounces linguine or cappelletti
Place tomatoes in a large bowl and add the remaining
ingredients except pasta.
Mix well and set aside for about 3 hours at room
temperature.
Cook pasta per package directions.
Drain and add to tomato mixture.
Toss well and serve immediately
Do you like lasagne?
Here's an easy recipe, one that I love serving to die-hard carnivores (they can't
believe it's so good).
The great thing is that you don't even have to cook the lasagne noodles.
The secret ingredient is the nutritional yeast, but you can leave it out if you don't
have any.
If you like this recipe and want to check out more of my favourite,
•1/2 lb Fresh mushrooms, sliced
•2 ts Olive oil
•2 28-oz jars of spaghetti sauce (or your favorite homemade sauce)
•9 Lasagne noodles
•10 oz Frozen chopped spinach, thawed
•1 lb Tofu
•1 ts Salt
•1-2 tb Nutritional yeast
•1 ts Oregano
•1/4 ts Garlic powder
•1/2 ts Basil
•1/8 ts Cayenne pepper
Saute the mushrooms in the olive oil until tender; remove from heat and
add the spaghetti sauce.
Place the tofu and thawed spinach in the food processor and process
briefly.
Add the remaining ingredients--except the noodles--to the processor and
blend until smooth.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Spread half of the sauce in the bottom of a 9x12-inch pan.
Place a layer of noodles over the sauce, using three dry noodles and
leaving a little space in between them.
Spead half of the tofu mixture on the noodles.
Cover with another layer of 3 noodles and then spread the remaining tofu
mixture over them.
Top with a final layer of noodles, and pour the remaining sauce over this.
Cover the dish tightly with foil, and bake for 30 minutes.
Then, remove the foil and bake for another 15 minutes.
Remove from the oven and sprinkle with soy parmesan if you want.
The lasagne will cut better if you allow it to cool for 15 minutes before
serving.
Here's an old favourite from my macrobiotic days, but don't let that put you off because this is a
delicious dish that even my husband enjoys. Well, actually he'll eat it only if I leave out the tofu,
which is very easy -- then I have some baked or pan-fried tofu on the side.
I prefer this simple casserole with whole wheat elbow macaroni, but use whatever shape you like.
Just be sure to cook it only to al dente (firm) so it holds up to the baking.
Sesame oil gives the macaroni a nutty, mellow flavour, but if you don't have any of this costly oil, it'll
still taste good.
To julienne a carrot, first slice it thinly crosswise, then cut each slice into 3 or 4 thin strips.
About 4 servings
•1 pound (whole wheat) macaroni, cooked
•3 Tablespoons light oil (sunflower, safflower, etc.) or sesame oil
•2 medium onions, chopped
•1 large (organically grown) carrot, julienne cut
•3 Tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour or regular unbleached flour
•2½ cups water
•½ pound firm, drained tofu, crumbled
•4 Tablespoons tamari soy sauce, or to taste
1 Tablespoon toasted sesame seeds, optional
About 4 servings
•1 pound (whole wheat) macaroni, cooked
•3 Tablespoons light oil (sunflower, safflower, etc.) or sesame oil
•2 medium onions, chopped
•1 large (organically grown) carrot, julienne cut
•3 Tablespoons whole wheat pastry flour or regular unbleached flour
•2½ cups water
•½ pound firm, drained tofu, crumbled
•4 Tablespoons tamari soy sauce, or to taste
1 Season with soy sauce to taste.
Place cooked macaroni in a 2-quart casserole dish.
Stir in the vegetables and sauce, mixing well to coat.
Sprinkle top with sesame seeds, if desired.
Bake covered for 20 minutes, then uncovered for another 20 minutes.
Remove from oven and allow to rest for ten minutes before serving.
Serve hot; leftovers are tasty when reheated
Here is a good marinara recipe from (of all
places) Consumer Reports, March 1996.
The original recipe calls for olive oil but I prefer to
saute in water (which makes the recipe much
lower in fat).
I make lots and freeze it in ice cube trays, then
put the cubes in freezer bags and use as
needed.
Heat olive oil in a 3- to 4-quart saucepan.
Add garlic.
Cook and stir constantly over medium-low heat for about 2 minutes, making sure the
garlic doesn't brown.
Add onion and, stirring frequently, continue cooking for about 8 minutes or until the
onion is soft and golden.
Add tomatoes, salt, and pepper, and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add fresh basil and simmer 5 minutes longer.
This recipe yields about 6 cups.
•3 cups pasta
•2/3 cup vinegar
•1/2 cup olive oil
•3 teaspoons sugar
•1 teaspoon garlic salt
•1/2 teaspoon dried dillweed
•1/2 teaspoon pepper
•4 tablespoons water
•3 medium cucumbers, seeded and coarsely chopped
•3 stalks celery, thinly sliced
•2 green onions, sliced
Cook pasta according to package directions.
Drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again.
Combine vinegar, oil, sugar, salt, dillweed, pepper and water.
Cover and shake well.
In a large bowl, combine pasta, cucumber, celery, and onions.
Add dressing, and toss to coat. Cover and chill.
Serves: 16
Preparation time: 90 min (prepare a day in advance)
Scott's recipes are at: ftp://ftp.sudval.org/users/sdg/recipes
I got this one today...sounds great.With pasta, as with many things, sometimes less is more.That's
the case with this simple yet classic dish.
It works well with any pasta shape, so don't limit it to spaghetti
Ingredients Serving Size : 12 Preparation Time :0:40
•2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
•2 large garlic cloves -- minced
•1/2 cup onion -- chopped
•2 28 oz cans crushed tomatoes
•1 teaspoon salt
•1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 cup fresh basil – chopped
Cook the spaghetti according to package directions.While spaghetti is cooking heat the oil
in a pot large enough to hold the spaghetti when it is cooked. Add the garlic and cook over
low heat, stirring frequently, until the garlic is golden (do not brown).Add the cooked,
drained spaghetti to the oil and garlic.
Add the salt, pepper, and parsley and toss to thoroughly coat the spaghetti
•1/2 cup Tahini
•3/4 Cups Lemon Juice
•1/3 cup water
•2 Cloves garlic
•Splash of Dr. Bronners Liquid Aminos (or
tamari)
•Salt to Taste
•Nutritional Yeast
•Some Pasta
Mince garlic.
Add Tahini, Garlic, Lemon Juice and water.
Mix well (in a blender or food processor)
Cook pasta.
Add tahini sauce to pasta and garnish with nutritional yeast (to taste.)
Very good :)
Serves: 6. Preparation time: 10-15mins
Ingredients Serves 4
•Extra-virgin olive oil (or just olive oil) 1/2 cup
•Ripe tomatoes 1 pound
•Spaghetti 1 pound
•Fresh basil leaves 12
salt/pepper to taste
Procedure
Wash and peel tomatoes (plunge them in boiling water for 2 minutes, take
out and peel), eliminate seeds and cut in small stripes.
Put tomatoes in a bowl, dress with oil, salt, pepper and finely cut basil.
Stir well and cover.
Let it season for at least 2 hours.
Cook spaghetti (penne or other shapes could do as well), drain and add to
tomatoes.
Stir well and serve quickly.
A variation of this recipe:
season with oregano instead of basil, add a clove of garlic (don't cut it, just peel
it!) and some sliced black olives to tomatoes, then follow the same procedure