Andrew Carmellini had me at “Hello!”
The acclaimed New York City chef wowed me last summer on my first trip to A Voce with his simple but stylish and stunningly flavorful food. (In fact, I had liked his food at Café Boulud before that, but somehow he makes more of a statement when he’s cooking Italian.)
And when his first cookbook came out some months ago, I was hooked on the first recipe I turned to.
“Urban Italian – Simple Recipes and True Stories from a Life in Food” is an inviting tome that manages to entertain with honest stories and funny anecdotes, all the while providing a detailed roadmap to memorable meals.
Carmellini (and his wife Gwen Hyman, who is co-author) claims he decided to write the book while waiting around for construction delays on A Voce (he is no longer chef there). Though he grew up in a food-loving Italian family, and has cooked over the years in such gourmet temples as Lespinasse (now closed) and Café Boulud, the Ohio-born Carmellini knows all too well the challenges of cooking in a tiny apartment kitchen in a big American city. Hence, the title, “Urban Italian” and the contents….a compendium of recipes that can be pulled off with success in that environment, without benefit of wood-burning pizza oven, root cellars, curing rooms, etc.
The book starts with the “True Stories” and a hilarious, laugh-out-loud bunch they are. It then moves on to the recipes, but not before a couple pages in which he lays out the ground rules for successful cooking, including “don’t stress out,” don’t be afraid to make a mess,” “don’t leave out the salt or the fat,” and “plan ahead.” Photos, by Quentin Bacon, add a lot to the experience, especially the tantalizing shots of the cooked foods.
Carmellini’s a fan of bold flavors, satisfying textures and food with a high comfort-quotient. He delivers all of the above in such dishes as Marinated Chicken Alla Griglia (with roasted garlic puree and Sicilian oregano), Lamb Leg with Garlic, Yogurt and Fennel, Spicy Corn with Hot Banana Pepper and Pine Nuts, and a divine Rigatoni Pugliese with chickpeas, Italian sausage and broccoli rabe. Some recipes contain just a few ingredients that can be tossed together on a weeknight. Others, like the My Grandmother’s Ravioli pictured here, are multi-page affairs with how-to directions and photos.
Instructions are clear and concise, with the lilt of Carmellini’s effervescent and sometimes iconoclastic personality peeking through. This may not be the best book for a novice cook – nothing is dumbed down. But for novices with guts, Urban Italian will make the move beyond the novice stage a delicious and fun experience.
Here’s the recipe for Rigatoni Pugliese, which has already made its way into my family’s regular repertoire.
RIGATONI PUGLIESE
Serves 4 to 6
Sauce:
1 15-ounce can chickpeas
¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 pound spicy Italian sausage
3 cups Basic Tomato Sauce (see note below)
½ teaspoon ground fennel seed
Broccoli rabe and rigatoni:
1 bunch broccoli rabe, cleaned of outer leaves and bottom stems trimmed
1 pound rigatoni
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, sliced very thin
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
Salt and pepper to taste
To finish the dish:
2 tablespoons butter
2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 cup grated pecorino cheese
Sauce:
Drain the chickpeas well, reserving the liquid. Blend half the chickpeas (about 1 cup) and all their liquid on high until the mixture forms a smooth paste, about 1 minute.
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Squeeze the sausage out of the casing and add the meat to the pan. Brown it, stirring regularly and breaking the meat up into small pieces with a spoon.
Add the tomato sauce and stir to combine.
Add the chickpea puree and the fennel seed and stir to combine. Cook over medium heat until the mixture forms a loose sauce and the flavors are combined, about 15 minutes.
Broccoli rabe and rigatoni:
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.
Blanch the broccoli rabe until the stems are just softened and the color has deepened, about 90 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon to a bowl of ice water to immediately stop the cooking process.
Return the water to a boil, add the rigatoni and cook until it’s al dente. Drain but do not rinse the pasta.
Warm the olive oil over medium-high heat in a medium sauté pan. Add the broccoli rabe, garlic, red pepper flakes and the remaining half of the chickpeas. Season with salt and pepper and saute until the greens are well coated, about 1 minute.
Return the rigatoni to the pot. Add the sauce and cook on medium-high heat, mixing well, until the pasta is well coated, about 1 minute. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the butter, olive oil and half the pecorino cheese. Transfer the pasta and sauce to a large serving dish and pour the broccoli rabe and chickpea mixture over the top. Top with the rest of the pecorino cheese and serve immediately.
Note: "Urban Italian" contains a recipe for Basic Tomato Sauce that is worthwhile but time-consuming. I sometimes substitute a good, simple packaged sauce, such as San Marzano, Lucini or Muiri.
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