RECIPE: Recipe: Rigatoni Al Forno (Nancy Verde Barr)

RECIPE:
G

gayr

Well-known member
Nancy Verde Barr - Rigatoni Al Forno from "We Called It Macaroni," my all time favorite Italian Cookbook.

1/4 pound Italian sausage, casing removed, crumbled

1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes, or more to taste

1 teaspoon sweet paprika

2 cups drained canned Italian plum tomatoes, chopped

Salt

1/4 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley

1 cup ricotta cheese

3/4 pound rigatoni or similar fat macaroni

1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino cheese

Put the sausage, onion, garlic, and 1/3 cup olive oil into a saute pan. Place over medium heat and cook until the onion is softened but not browned. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, hot pepper flakes, and paprika and cook 5 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes, salt, and parsley, bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer gently 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F. With 1 tablespoon of the remaining olive oil, coat the bottom and sides of an ovenproof pasta dish and strain the ricotta cheese into the dish.

Cook the rigatoni in 5 quarts boiling salted water. Add 2 tablespoons boiling water from the pasta to the ricotta cheese and stir to blend. Drain the pasta when it is still slightly undercooked (after about 7 minutes) and pour over the ricotta cheese in the pasta dish. Immediately mix in the sauce. Sprinkle the pecorino cheese on top and drizzle on the remaining olive oil. Bake 20 minutes, or until the pasta is cooked and the cheese is lightly browned.

Serves 6

This recipe can be easily doubled and that is how I make it always doubled.

 
Mmm, looks good. Two questions: whole milk or skim Ricotta? And do you really mix everything up in

the pan? Thanks.

 
Marianne, I use whole milk ricotta and I have done the mixing both ways .... in the pan or in the

pasta pot after it has been drained. It works either way.

 
Marianne, I hope you enjoy the recipe as much as my family and I do. Nancy Verde Barr is

in my humble opinion, a genius. She was Julia Child's executive chef for 20 years.

 
Report:: making the sauce...this is one of the tastiest tomato sauces that I have ever made. Dinner,

to complete the meal, got an unexpected delay after I made the sauce, but I hope to put the whole thing together tomorrow (Sunday night). I had to sub a little...I used a 28 oz. can of Hunt's whole tomatoes, drained them and then pierced them to open them up and released their juices, chopped and squeezed them, and by the time I got done, there was just a little over the quantity called for in the recipe.

I was really pleasantly surprised that the small amount of Italian Sausage, the sun dried tomatoes, the onion and the seasonings gave the sauce such a robust flavor.

I'm not familiar with Nancy Verde Barr, but would like to know more.

Tomorrow night is Rigatoni Al Forno night!

Thanks.

 
Gay, I puzzled a bit over "strain ricotta" then wondered if the recipe called for making the

cheese from scratch. I've never made ricotta, but assume it needs to be strained.

 
Curious, I assume that statement is in the recipe if the Ricotta is watery. I have never

strained the ricotta. I use Polly-O and I have never found it to be watery.

 
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