Ragusa Shepherds Pasta Fusilli Al Pastore Ragusa Recipes

FUSILLI ALLA CAPRESE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until tender but still firm to the bite, stirring occasionally, about 8 to 10 minutes. Drain pasta into a large bowl and reserve 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.
• In a medium skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, salt, and pepper. As the tomatoes cook and soften, smash them with a fork. Continue to cook until the tomatoes make a chunky style sauce, about 4 minutes. Transfer the tomato sauce to the bowl with the pasta. Toss to combine. Add the basil leaves and mozzarella. Stir to combine. Add the reserved pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, until the pasta is moist. Serve.

RAGUSA STYLE RICOTTA RAVIOLI

Steps:

• For the filling: In a medium bowl, combine ricotta cheese, sugar, and orange zest.
• For the dough: Place thinly rolled out pasta sheets on a clean work surface and place tablespoonfuls of the filling, along 1 of the long edges about 2 inches apart and about 2 inches from the edge. Brush around the filling lightly with some of the beaten egg. Fold the dough over the ricotta filling and, using a sharp knife or pastry wheel, cut the ravioli apart into squares or circles about 2 1/2 inches wide and press the edges carefully to seal. Place the ravioli on a baking sheet that has been sprinkled with some of the cornmeal and repeat with the remaining filling and pasta sheets until you have used all of the filling.
• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil
• Cook the ravioli, in batches, until they float on the top of the surface, about 5 minutes. Serve hot with the Sicilian Style Meat Sauce.
• In the bowl of a food processor combine the flour and salt. Turn on processor and mix well. With the machine running, add the eggs, egg yolks, and olive oil through the feed tube, and process until it resembles wet cornmeal, about 2 minutes. Add water, 1 tablespoon at a time, as needed, to help pasta come together when pressed.
• Bring a pot of salted water to a boil
• Take a handful of dough at a time and form into a firm ball. Press each dough ball into desired shape using a pasta machine according to the manufacturer's instructions. Repeat with the remaining dough.
• Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagasse, 2001
• In a Dutch oven or large saucepan heat 1/2 the olive oil over medium-high heat and add the onions. Cook, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon until soft and lightly caramelized, about 6 minutes. Add the tomatoes, sugar, fennel, nutmeg, allspice and cloves Bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook until sauce has thickened slightly, about 20 minutes. Using a hand-held immersion blender, puree the sauce until smooth.
• Heat the remaining oil in a skillet and add the pork ribs. Season the ribs lightly on all sides with salt and pepper, turning occasionally, until well browned on all sides. Add the browned ribs to the tomato sauce and simmer until sauce is thick and flavorful and the ribs are very tender, 2 to 3 hours, adding water as necessary to keep the sauce from getting too thick and burning. Serve over pasta or Ragusa-Style Ricotta Ravioli.
• You may want to pull the meat off the bones, shred it, and return it to the sauce before serving the sauce with the ravioli.
• Any unused pasta sauce may be frozen for up to 2 months.

FUSILLI ALLA CAPRESE BY GIADA DE LAURENTIIS

Steps:

• In a medium skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
• Add the tomatoes, salt, and pepper. As the tomatoes cook and soften, smash them with a fork. Continue to cook until the tomatoes make a chunky style sauce, about 4 minutes.
• Transfer the tomato sauce to the bowl with the pasta.
• Toss to combine.
• Add the basil leaves and mozzarella. Stir to combine.
• Add the reserved pasta water, 1/4 cup at a time, until the pasta is moist. Serve.

SCACCE RAGUSANE (SICILIAN STUFFED FLATBREAD)

Steps:

• Pour 1/3 cup warm water into a mixing bowl and sprinkle yeast over the top. Let stand for 10 to 15 minutes to make sure yeast is active.
• Add olive oil, semolina flour, and salt to the yeast mixture. Mix with your hand to form a relatively stiff ball of dough, adding more water if needed to bring the dough together.
• Transfer dough to a work surface and knead until smooth, about 5 minutes. Cover with the mixing bowl and let rest for 30 minutes.
• Uncover and knead the dough for another 3 or 4 minutes; divide dough into 2 portions, and shape each into smooth balls. Use damp hands to help smooth the dough out, if needed.
• Generously dust half of a kitchen towel with semolina flour and place the 2 balls of dough on top. Sprinkle more flour on top of the balls and cover with the other half of the towel. Leave to rise until the dough has almost doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with foil and sprinkle with cornmeal.
• Roll each ball of dough out into a very thin circle or oval shape on a lightly floured surface.
• Combine pizza sauce and basil in a bowl. Spread with a thin layer of sauce and scatter pieces of provolone cheese every few inches, leaving a 1 inch border. Fold over the opposite edges toward the middle to form a rectangle. Press lightly to flatten slightly. Repeat sauce and cheese step.
• Fold each end toward the center to make a square shape. Spread with a thin layer of sauce and scatter pieces of cheese on just one half. Fold in half, overlapping the edge by about 1 inch. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Repeat filling and folding the second piece of dough.
• Bake in the preheated oven until very well browned, 16 to 18 minutes. Some spots may get charred, but this is fine and desirable, since scacce are traditionally cooked in very hot wood-fired ovens. Let rest for 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

THREE-PEPPER PORK PASTA

Steps:

• Heat oil until hot, but not smoking.
• Add onion and cook until soft.
• Add peppers, cook about 10 minutes, or until they have softened.
• Add chili flakes.
• Stir in pork.
• Add white wine.
• Cook 3 minutes.
• Add tomato paste, tomato sauce, and salt and pepper to taste.
• Cook about 20 minutes.
• While the sauce simmers, cook pasta to al dente (fusilli or penne pasta is recommended).
• Toss noodles with all of the sauce until well-coated. Add some pasta water, if needed, for moisture.
• Plate the pasta, top with cheese, and drizzle with olive oil to serve.