Spaghetti Ala Celia Food

SPAGHETTI AGLIO E OLIO

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 2 tablespoons of salt and the pasta and cook according to the directions on the package. Set aside 1 1/2 cups of the pasta cooking water before you drain the pasta.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a pot large enough to hold the pasta, such as a 12-inch saute pan or a large, shallow pot. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring frequently, until it just begins to turn golden on the edges-don't overcook it! Add the red pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds more. Carefully add the reserved pasta-cooking water to the garlic and oil and bring to a boil. Lower the heat, add 1 teaspoon of salt, and simmer for about 5 minutes, until the liquid is reduced by about a third.
• Add the drained pasta to the garlic sauce and toss. Off the heat, add the parsley and Parmesan and toss well. Allow the pasta to rest off the heat for 5 minutes for the sauce to be absorbed. Taste for seasoning and serve warm with extra Parmesan on the side.

PASTA ALLA GRICIA

Steps:

• Add the bacon to a large skillet. Place over medium heat and cook until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crispy, about 20 minutes. Drain all but 2 tablespoons of the bacon fat from the pan. Stir in the pepper and set aside.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Season it generously with salt. Cook the pasta for 2 minutes less than the package directions, about 8 minutes. Add 1 cup of the pasta water to the pan with the bacon, return the pan to medium-high heat and cook, scraping up the bits from the bottom of the skillet with a wooden spoon, until slightly reduced, about 1 minute.
• Using tongs, remove the pasta from the water and add it directly to the pan with the sauce. Sprinkle the pasta with the cheese and begin to toss the pasta with the sauce. Continue to stir over low heat and toss until the sauce thickens and coats the pasta and the pasta is cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes. (Through this process, you may need to add more pasta water to help cook the pasta and maintain a sauce. This could take up to a cup more pasta water.) Serve topped with more cheese if desired.

SPAGHETTI ALLA GRICIA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water, stirring occasionally.
• While pasta cooks, immediately heat a nonstick pan over medium heat. Add guanciale and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Add 1 ladle of pasta cooking water, stir, and cover pan. As pasta cooks, add another ladle of cooking water to the pan with the guanciale to create a sauce.
• At about 10 minutes of pasta cooking time, reserve a cup of cooking water and drain pasta. Add spaghetti to the pan with the guanciale; toss, adding reserved cooking water if necessary. Turn off heat. Add 1/3 the Pecorino Romano cheese to the pasta and toss until creamy.
• Divide pasta between 4 plates. Top each with remaining Pecorino Romano cheese and black pepper. Serve immediately.

SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

Steps:

• Prepare the sauce while the pasta is cooking to ensure that the spaghetti will be hot and ready when the sauce is finished; it is very important that the pasta is hot when adding the egg mixture, so that the heat of the pasta cooks the raw eggs in the sauce.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, add the pasta and cook for 8 to 10 minutes or until tender yet firm (as they say in Italian "al dente.") Drain the pasta well, reserving 1/2 cup of the starchy cooking water to use in the sauce if you wish.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium flame. Add the pancetta and saute for about 3 minutes, until the bacon is crisp and the fat is rendered. Toss the garlic into the fat and saute for less than 1 minute to soften.
• Add the hot, drained spaghetti to the pan and toss for 2 minutes to coat the strands in the bacon fat. Beat the eggs and Parmesan together in a mixing bowl, stirring well to prevent lumps. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the egg/cheese mixture into the pasta, whisking quickly until the eggs thicken, but do not scramble (this is done off the heat to ensure this does not happen.) Thin out the sauce with a bit of the reserved pasta water, until it reaches desired consistency. Season the carbonara with several turns of freshly ground black pepper and taste for salt. Mound the spaghetti carbonara into warm serving bowls and garnish with chopped parsley. Pass more cheese around the table.

SPAGHETTI ALLA CECI

Steps:

• Bring a big pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Salt it and cook the spaghetti to al dente.
• While the spaghetti cooks, heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add the EVOO, red pepper flakes, and garlic. Place the chickpeas in a food processor and pulse to a fine chop. Add the chickpeas to the skillet with the garlic and season them with the thyme, salt, and pepper. Sauté them for 3 to 4 minutes. Add the wine or stock and cook down for 30 seconds or so, then stir in the tomatoes and adjust the seasoning. Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce. Top the pasta with the parsley and grated cheese.

SPAGHETTI ALL' ELSA

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the water and add pasta. Cook to al dente, with a bite to it.
• Heat a medium sauce pot over medium-low heat. Add extra-virgin olive oil, garlic, and red pepper and let them cook 5 minutes, garlic will be soft and light golden. Remove garlic. Add stock or wine and stir 30 seconds, add tomatoes and combine. Season the sauce with salt, to taste, then stir basil in and reduce heat to low.
• When pasta is cooked, turn off the heat, drain the pasta then add it back to the still-hot, deep pot. Add butter to spaghetti and toss to melt and coat. Add half the red sauce and all of the cheese, work in a handful at a time as you toss to combine. To serve, use tongs or a meat fork to swirl the pasta into buttery, cheesy mounds to pile onto each plate. Top each portion with spoonfuls of remaining sauce. Whoa, Mama!

SPAGHETTI ALLA CARBONARA

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with 6 quarts of water and add the salt. Bring the water to a boil.
• Fry the guanciale in a skillet until crispy; do not drain the fat drippings. Set aside.
• In a large bowl, beat the whole eggs with the Pecorino Romano cheese for 1 minute. Then add the freshly ground black pepper.
• At this point your water should be boiling. Add your pasta and cook it for 8 to 9 minutes or according to the instructions on the box (or if using fresh pasta, cook for 4 to 5 minutes). When the pasta is cooked al dente (chewy and firm), drain the pasta well, add the pasta to the bowl with the mixture of eggs and cheese, mix quickly and then finally add the guanciale with all the fat drippings. Stir quickly for a few more minutes and serve in hot bowls.
• Heap the flour into a pile on a wood or marble countertop. Make a large well or crater in the center, big enough to the hold the eggs like a bowl. Break the eggs in the center and knead for about 10 minutes, pausing after 5 minutes in order to let the dough relax. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. After the time, or you can roll out some sheets with a pasta sheet roller and cutter or cut with a knife.

SPAGHETTI ALA ELSA

Steps:

• Bring a lare pot of water to a boil.
• Salt the water and add pasta.
• Cook to al dente.
• Heat a medium sauce pan over medium low heat.
• Add extra virgin olive oil, garlic, and red pepper. Let cook for 5 minutes, garlic will be soft and light golden.
• Remove garlic.
• Add stock or wine and stir 30 seconds, add tomatoes and combine.
• Season the sauce with salt to taste, then stir basil in and reduce heat to low.
• When pasta is cooked, turn off the heat drain the pasta then add it back to the still hot deep pot.
• Add butter to spaghetti and toss to melt and coat.
• Add half the red sauce and all of the cheese, work in a handful at a time as you toss to combine.
• To serve, use tongs to swirl the pasta into buttery cheesy mounds to pile onto each plate.
• Top each portion with spoonfuls of remaining sauce.

SPAGHETTI ALLA GRICIA

Steps:

• Fill a pasta pot or a large stockpot with 6 quarts of water, add 6 tablespoons of salt, and bring the water to a boil over high heat. If you are not using a pasta pot, put a colander in the sink or have a pair of tongs handy for lifting the pasta out of the water.
• Cut the onion in half, separate the layers, and cut each layer into petals that are 1 inch wide across the middle. Put the onion petals in a large sauté pan with 1 cup of water and a big pinch of salt and cook the onion over high heat until the water evaporates, about 5 minutes. Add the guanciale and olive oil and cook over medium-high heat until the guanciale is crisp, about 3 minutes. Remove the pan from heat and add another cup of water, the red pepper flakes, and black pepper. Turn off the heat while you cook the spaghetti.
• Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water, stir to prevent the strands from sticking together, partially cover the pot so the water returns to a boil quickly and continues boiling, and cook the pasta, using the time indicated on the package as a guide, until it's al dente. About 1 minute before the pasta is done, place the sauce over high heat. Lift the pasta out of the cooking water, or reserve 1 cup of the water and drain the pasta, and immediately add it to the pan with the sauce. Cook the pasta with the sauce for 2 minutes, stirring with a rubber spatula or tongs, to coat the pasta with the sauce, adding some of the reserved pasta water if the pasta is dry and sticky instead of slippery and glistening. Turn off the heat and stir in the parsley. Add the grated Parmigiano-Reggiano and pecorino romano and stir to combine.
• Use tongs to lift the spaghetti out of the pan and onto the center of each of four plates, dividing the pasta evenly, and twirling it as it falls onto the plate to form a tight mound. Spoon any sauce left in the pan over the pasta and use a microplane or another fine grater to grate a light layer of pecorino romano over each plate, and serve.
• suggested wine pairing
• Circeo Rosso (Lazio)

SPAGHETTI AGLIO E OLIO

Steps:

• Bring a large pan of well-salted water to the boil and cook the spaghetti for about 10 mins, or until al dente - it should retain a little bite.
• When the pasta is nearly ready, heat the oil in a frying pan set over a medium heat and sizzle the garlic and chilli, if using, for 1 minute until fragrant and the garlic is lightly golden but not brown (the garlic will taste bitter if it gets too dark).
• Drain the spaghetti and add it to the garlicky oil with the parsley. Season and toss to combine, then serve.