Sicilian Style Mini Penne Recipes

PENNE WITH SICILIAN SHEPARD'S SAUCE

Steps:

• Mince together the celery and carrot, adding the herbs towards the end to chop only coarsely. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the salami and cook to release a little of its fat. Stir in the minced celery blend, the onions, a little salt, and a generous amount of black pepper. Turn the heat down to medium and saute to golden brown.
• Stir in the garlic and hot pepper, cooking a few minutes. Add the wine and slowly simmer the mixture until it is almost completely reduced, scraping up the brown bits at the bottom of the pan. Stir in the tomato paste and cook 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, crushing them with your hands as they go into the pan. Cook, uncovered, at a lively bubble (turn the heat up if necessary), stirring and scraping down the sides of the pan with a spatula. Cook 10 minutes, or until thick. Taste for seasoning, cover, and remove from heat.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta in rolling boiling water, stirring often, until slightly underdone. Drain in a colander.
• Add the pasta to the sauce and toss together over medium heat for 2 to 3 minutes, tasting for hot pepper and salt. Spread about 1/3 of the pasta in a heated serving bowl and daub with a third of the ricotta. Layer in more pasta and ricotta, then the remaining pasta, finishing with a few spoonfuls of ricotta. Serve hot.

SICILIAN-STYLE MINI PENNE

Steps:

• To prepare your Sicilian-style mini penne , begin by washing the eggplant, removing the two ends and cutting it first into slices 1 and then into sticks ½ inch (1 cm) thick that you'll then dice 2 . Place the diced eggplants in a colander, and place this over a container. Sprinkle with coarse salt 3 ,
• and place a plate over it with a weight on top 4 . Leave it like this for at least an hour so that the salt flushes out the bitter vegetable water from the eggplant 5 . After this time, rinse the cubes briefly under running water 6 to remove any excess salt
• and dry them with a clean cloth 7 . Fry in plenty of boiling oil, adding a few cubes at a time 8 to avoid lowering the temperature of the oil too much, as it should remain at 340-350°F (170-180°C). Once the eggplant has cooked for a few minutes, drain it on paper towel 9 .
• Cut the mozzarella into thin slices of around ¼ inch (½ cm) thick and then into strips of the same size 10 . Finally, chop it into very small cubes and place in a colander positioned over a container 11 . Leave it like this for at least an hour, so that all the liquid drains from the fior di latte 12 .
• In the meantime, prepare the tomato sauce. Peel and chop the onion 13 , slice the chili pepper, remove the stem 14 , and cut into thin strips. You might also want to remove the seeds if you want to tone down the spice! Next, pour some oil into a pan, add the chopped onion and chili and fry for a few minutes, stirring continuously to make sure they don't burn 15 .
• Once the onion has softened, add the peeled chopped tomatoes 16 and cook for at least half an hour over low heat, seasoning with salt to taste. When the sauce is ready, add the fried eggplant 17 , allowing the flavor to infuse into the sauce 18 for a few minutes before turning off the heat.
• Cook the pasta in boiling salted water 19 , taking care to drain it a couple of minutes before it's cooked, and pour it into the sauce with the eggplant 20 . Tear up the basil leaves with your hands and add them 21
• together with the diced fior di latte, setting some aside for the garnish 22 . Mix everything together, still with the heat off 23 . Fill four 1¼-cup (300-ml) bowls with the mixture 24
• and garnish with a few pieces of the remaining fior di latte on the top 25 . Place your bowls on a baking sheet and broil them in an oven preheated to 460°F (240°C) for 2-3 minutes until a crust has formed on the surface 26 . At this point, your Sicilian-style mini penne will be ready 27 . Serve piping hot, and enjoy!

PAM'S EASY MINI PENNE WITH MEAT SAUCE

Steps:

• 1. In a large saute pan or skillet, heat oil and add minced shallot and garlic. Stir and cook until fragrant but not brown. Add ground chuck and Italian sausage, broken into small bite sized pieces and saute until browned. Add remaining ingredients except sugar, salt and pepper, and olives. Mix well, stir occasionally and let simmer on medium low for about 20 minutes. Add olives and taste to adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Add as much or as little of the sugar as you like, per your preferences. Simmer until sauce is thick enough for your taste. (I like mine really thick)
• 2. While sauce is simmering, cook the pasta according to package directions, drain and keep warm.
• 3. To serve, place a portion of penne on the plate, top with 1/4 of the meat sauce and sprinkle with grated Asiago Cheese. Pass more cheese at the table if desired.

SICILIAN PASTA

Steps:

• Saute onion and garlic in olive oil until transparent.
• Add tomatoes, eggplant and basil. Cook approximately 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile cook pasta according to package directions; drain well.
• Add tomato/eggplant mixture to pasta; add mozzarella cheese and stir well.
• Serve immediately.