Alessandro Giuntolis Pasta With Red Wine Recipes

SPAGHETTI WITH OCTOPUS BRAISED IN RED WINE

Steps:

• Place 2 tablespoons olive oil in large skillet or saute pan, and turn heat to medium-high. Add carrot, onion and celery. Sprinkle with pinch of salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion becomes translucent, about 5 minutes.
• Add octopus, along with some pepper and a little more salt. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute, and then add wine, bay leaf and garlic. Cook until octopus is tender, for about 1 hour (check with point of sharp knife). Remove octopus, and cut into bite-size pieces. Return octopus to skillet, and turn heat to a minimum.
• Meanwhile, bring large pot of water to boil, and salt it. Fifteen minutes before eating, begin cooking pasta. When it is barely tender but not nearly tender enough to eat, drain it, reserving about 1 cup cooking liquid. Add pasta to octopus mixture, with half the reserved liquid. Cook until pasta is tender but not mushy; add remaining liquid if needed to keep mixture from drying out.
• Add remaining olive oil, along with butter, cherry tomatoes and basil. Stir until butter melts, and then serve.

RED-WINE SPAGHETTI WITH BROCCOLI

Steps:

• Cut broccoli into 1-inch-wide florets (with 1/2 inch of stem). Blanch in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water , uncovered, 2 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to a large colander to drain, reserving broccoli-cooking liquid in pot, then transfer broccoli to a bowl.
• Return cooking liquid to a boil and cook spaghetti, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes (pasta will not be fully cooked). Drain in colander and return empty pot to stovetop. Add wine and sugar to pot and boil vigorously 2 minutes. Add spaghetti and shake pot to prevent pasta from sticking. Gently stir with tongs until coated and boil over high heat, stirring occasionally, until most of liquid is absorbed, about 6 minutes (pasta will be al dente).
• Immediately after adding spaghetti to wine mixture, cook garlic and red pepper flakes in oil in a deep 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately low heat, shaking skillet occasionally, until garlic is pale golden, about 5 minutes. Add broccoli, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Increase heat to high and pour spaghetti mixture into skillet, tossing with tongs to combine (skillet will be very full). Cook, stirring, until all of wine is absorbed, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in cheese. Serve immediately.

SPAGHETTI WITH RED WINE SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it. Put the oil, garlic, and hot pepper in a large, deep skillet.
• When the water boils, add the pasta; turn the heat under the skillet to high. Cook the pasta as usual, stirring. As soon as the garlic begins to brown, sprinkle it with salt and pepper to taste and add three-quarters of the bottle of wine (a little more than 2 cups); bring to a boil and keep it there.
• When the pasta begins to bend-after less than 5 minutes of cooking drain it and add it to the wine mixture. Cook, stirring occasionally, adding wine a little at a time if the mixture threatens to dry out completely.
• Taste the pasta frequently. When it is done tender but with a little bite-stir in the butter and turn off the heat. When the butter glazes the pasta, serve it immediately.
• You can easily add another dimension to this dish by tossing in about 1 cup chopped walnuts-pieces of about 1/4 inch, no smaller-along with the butter.
• A garnish of chopped fresh parsley or basil will make the presentation more attractive and the flavor somewhat brighter.