Cook Like a Rock Star - Anne Burrell [38]
2 Bring the pan and the remaining fat to medium heat, add the onions and red pepper, and season generously with salt. Cook until the onions are soft and aromatic, 8 to 10 minutes.
3 Add the tomatoes and two-thirds of the guanciale, and bring to a boil (BTB), then reduce to a simmer (RTS) and cook the sauce for about 1 hour, tasting periodically and adding salt as needed (trust me, you will need to reseason).
4 Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook for 1 minute less than the instructions on the package suggest. Taste it: It should be toothsome with just a little nugget of hard pasta still in the center—this is al dente.
5 Ladle about 2 cups of the sauce into a bowl and set it aside as an insurance policy; you want the perfect ratio of pasta to sauce and while you can always add it back, you can’t take it out once the pasta is in the pan.
6 Drain the pasta, add it to the pan of sauce, and stir well. Cook the pasta in the sauce, adding more sauce if needed, for another 1 to 2 minutes; the pasta will begin to absorb the sauce and it will cling to the pasta in a lovely little hug. Add the cheese and a drizzle of big fat finishing oil and toss until it’s a homogeneous mixture. Divide among serving bowls, top with more Parm, and give each a sprinkle of the crispy critters.
Open your mouth, dive in, and enjoy!
Raviolo al’Uovo (Ricotta-Nestled Egg Yolk)
SERVES: 8 • TIME: ABOUT 30 MINUTES WITH PREMADE PASTA DOUGH
After culinary school, I spent a year in Italy learning to cook Italian food the way the Italians do, the right way. That year was probably one of the most important of my education; I learned a ton from the chefs I worked for—techniques and methods I still rely on every day. I also learned how to make this dish—which is a total showstopper.
Uovo means “egg,” and that’s what this dish is all about: a lovely golden egg yolk nestled in a bed of creamy ricotta cheese all wrapped up in a tender blanket of pasta. Cut these lovelies open and the yolk flows out of the center. It’s an incredibly sophisticated and sexy dish, but deceivingly easy to make—the only catch is you have to cook the raviolis in batches. I realize this may seem like a pain, but it’s really the best approach as these ravs are very fragile (and they do cook really quickly, so it’s actually not that big a deal). I promise it’s worth it, because this recipe will make you a rock star!
MISE EN PLACE
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 cup freshly grated Parmigiano, plus more for garnish
¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
2 large eggs plus 8 large egg yolks
Kosher salt
All-purpose flour, as needed
½ recipe Chef Anne’s All-Purpose Pasta Dough, rolled for ravioli
Semolina flour, as needed
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
2 cups chicken stock
¼ cup chopped fresh sage leaves
1 In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta, Parm, parsley, and 2 whole eggs; mix well and season with salt.
2 Dust a clean work surface lightly with all-purpose flour and lay out two sheets of pasta about 12 inches long; brush them lightly with water. Equally space 4 dollops of the ricotta mixture on each pasta sheet; then use a spoon to make a “nest” or small hole in the center of each dollop. Carefully separate the remaining eggs (reserve the whites for another purpose) and put a yolk in each ricotta “nest”—the ricotta should lovingly nestle each yolk (if a yolk breaks, scoop it out with a spoon and don’t use it).
3 Cover the ricotta nests and egg yolk with another sheet of pasta. Use your index fingers to press around each ricotta nest to seal the edges, then use a fluted ring cutter or dough roller to cut around each ravioli (they should be 3 to 4 inches in diameter). Reserve the ravioli on a tray generously dusted with semolina.
4 Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. In a large sauté pan, melt half the butter and add half of the chicken stock (you’re going to use the remainder for your next batch); season with salt