Pasta aficionados invited to tour Italy with Bugialli

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BUGIALLI ON PASTA, by Giuliano Bugialli; Stewart, Tabori & Chang, New York; 2000, 399 pages, $35.

It may be because I’m about as far from Italian as a girl can get. Or because I’m lazy. Or because I’m always pressed for time. Whatever the reason, I’ve never wanted to make pasta from scratch. Not even with a pasta machine. Not even just to try it.

Don’t get me wrong. I love homemade pasta – if it’s made in someone else’s home. But the thought of spending many labor-intensive hours in my kitchen cutting sheets of dough into spaghetti doesn’t appeal to me at all.

Pasta saw me through college. It was cheap, tasty and quick. Making pasta from scratch seemed to defeat the inherent speediness of this staple food.

So when I first saw “Bugialli on Pasta,” I passed over it. The cover illustration is gorgeous, the recipes sounded delicious, and Giuliano Bugialli is pretty famous as far as Italian cooking goes. But, as I said, I don’t do pasta that doesn’t come in a box.

Luckily, I gave the book a second look.

See, this is a book for everyone, including boxed-pasta devotees such as myself. There are plenty of recipes for homemade pasta, from the common ravioli and lasagna to the more unusual troffiette, a Genoese corkscrew pasta, and malloreddus, similar to gnocchi.

In this revision of his 1988 best seller, Bugialli covers all the bases. There are easy recipes and difficult recipes, dishes with hard-to-find ingredients and dishes you can make with whatever is in your pantry. Some, such as the homemade pasta recipes, take a while to make. Others take just a few minutes.

Bugialli takes cooks on a nine-chapter tour of Italy, its flavors and ingredients. Photographer Andy Ryan captures the visual essence of the country, its landscape and markets. Perhaps the most beautiful photograph of all, however, is a close-up of ripe, sun-drenched tomatoes.

I wouldn’t trade the shots of Italy, but I wish there were more photos of the actual recipes. But what this book lacks in food photography it makes up for in illustration. Step-by-step line drawings clarify pasta-making methods, artichoke cleaning and other processes that are easier shown than written.

Bugialli’s straightforward recipes and instructions will inspire novices and challenge accomplished cooks. Heck, I may even try my hand at ravioli. But until then, there are plenty of other tantalizing recipes for me to try.

Pasta e Carciofi (Pasta and Artichokes)

3 large, fresh artichokes (canned artichokes can be substituted)

1 large lemon, cut in half

2 medium-sized cloves garlic, peeled

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 cup dry white wine

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 cup lukewarm water

1 pound dried rigatoni, preferably imported Italian

Coarse-grained salt (to cook the pasta)

2 tablespoons sweet butter

15 large sprigs Italian parsley, leaves only

4 ounces provolone cheese

I cheated and used canned artichokes with delicious results. If you’re using fresh ones, place them and the lemon halves in a bowl of cold water and set aside for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, finely chop the garlic on a board.

Trim off the darker outer ring of the artichokes. Remove as many rows of the outer leaves as necessary to arrive at those tender inner rows where you can clearly see the separation between the green at the top and the light yellow at the bottom. Remove the top green part. When you reach the rows in which only the very tips of the leaves are green, cut off all the tips together with a knife. Cut the artichoke into quarters lengthwise, in order to remove the choke. Draw the tip of the knife blade across just below the choke to draw it out.

Cut what is left of the artichokes into thin slices. Put them back into the lemon water. Heat the oil in a medium-sized, flameproof casserole over medium heat; when the oil is warm, add the garlic and sautT for 5 minutes. Drain the artichokes, add them to the casserole, and sautT for 5 minutes. Pour in the wine and boil, letting it evaporate for 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then add the water, cover the pan, and cook for 20 minutes, stirring every so often with a wooden spoon.

Bring a large pot of cold water to a boil. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. When the water reaches a boil, add coarse salt to taste, then add the pasta and cook for 8 to 11 minutes, depending on the brand; that is, 1 minute less than for normal al dente.

Use the 2 tablespoons of butter to heavily coat a 13 1/2-by-8 3/4-inch glass baking dish. Coarsely chop the parsley on a board, and cut the cheese into cubes smaller than 1/2 inch. Drain the pasta, transfer it to a large bowl, add the artichokes with their juice, then sprinkle on the chopped parsley and the provolone cheese. Mix gently but thoroughly, then transfer to the prepared baking dish and bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and serve immediately.

Penne Alla Bettola (Penne with Spicy Tomato-Cream Sauce)

2 medium-sized cloves garlic, peeled

5 tablespoons olive oil

11/2 pounds ripe, fresh tomatoes; or 11/2 pounds canned tomatoes, preferably imported Italian, drained

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes

1 pound dried penne, preferably imported Italian

15 large sprigs Italian parsley, leaves only

2 tablespoons vodka

1 cup heavy cream

Coarse-grained salt (to cook the pasta)

Coarsely chop the garlic on a board. Heat the oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat, and, when the oil is warm, add the chopped garlic and sautT for 3 minutes. If using fresh tomatoes, cut them into 1-inch pieces. Add fresh or canned tomatoes to the pan and cook for 20 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper, then add the red pepper flakes. Pass the contents of the pan through a food mill, using the disc with the smallest holes, into a large skillet.

Bring a large pot of cold water to a boil. Meanwhile, place the skillet over low heat and simmer the sauce as you cook the pasta. Add coarse salt to the boiling water, then add the pasta and cook for 8 to 11 minutes, depending on the brand; that is, 1 minute less than for normal al dente.

Meanwhile, coarsely chop the parsley on a board. Drain the pasta and add it to the skillet with the tomato sauce. Add the vodka, mix very well, and raise the heat to medium. SautT for 1 minute, stirring the pasta vigorously with a wooden spoon. Add the cream. Taste or salt and pepper. Mix for 30 seconds to allow the cream to be absorbed well into the pasta, then sprinkle with the parsley, transfer pasta to a warmed serving dish, and serve immediately.