Marcella Hazans Pasta With Four Herbs Recipes

MARCELLA HAZAN'S TOMATO SAUCE

Steps:

• Combine the tomatoes, their juices, the butter and the onion halves in a saucepan. Add a pinch or two of salt.
• Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Cook, uncovered, for about 45 minutes. Stir occasionally, mashing any large pieces of tomato with a spoon. Add salt as needed.
• Discard the onion before tossing the sauce with pasta. This recipe makes enough sauce for a pound of pasta.

MARCELLA HAZAN'S PASTA WITH FOUR HERBS

Steps:

• Bring 4 quarts of water to a rolling boil. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and when water has returned to a boil, add the penne, stirring with a long- handled wooden fork or spoon to distribute the pasta evenly.
• While the pasta is cooking, proceed with the rest of the recipe. Chop the fresh herbs together briefly and place in a deep bowl in which you will serve the pasta.
• Seed the tomatoes and cut them into small cubes. Add to the herbs in the bowl and mix together gently but thoroughly. Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper if necessary or desired.
• This step must proceed very quickly, so be sure your timing is right. Heat the olive oil over a medium high flame until it is very hot. When it begins to smoke, pour all at once over the vegetables in the bowl. Drain the cooked pasta and add it immediately to the oil and sizzling vegetables. Mix well. Serve immediately.

PASTA WITH SMOTHERED ONION SAUCE (MARCELLA HAZAN)

Steps:

• Put the butter and olive oil, and the onions with some salt in a large sauté pan. Cover and turn heat to very low. Cook for almost 45 minutes to an hour until the onions become very soft.
• Uncover the pan, raise the heat to medium high, and cook the onions until they become colored a deep, dark gold. Any liquid the onions may have shed must now boil away.
• Add liberal grindings of pepper. Taste and correct for salt. Bear in mind that onions become very sweet when cooked in this manner and need an adequate amount of seasoning. Add the wine, turn the heat up, and stir frequently while the wine bubbles away. Add the parsley, stir thoroughly, and take off heat.
• Toss with cooked drained pasta, adding the grated Parmesan. As you toss, separate the onion strands somewhat to distribute them as much as possible throughout the pasta. Serve immediately.