I’m getting ready to leave for a vacation in Italy this week. For me, part of getting for my trip is sampling some Italian recipes I’m been finding online and in cookbooks. My favorite so far, is the Spaghetti al Limone, published on 1/31/07 in a New York Times article, written by Marlena Spieler. How do you prepare for vacations?
Spaghetti al Limone
Prep Time: 45 minutes
1 lemon
1 1/2 cups dry white wine
3/4 to 1 1/2 cups heavy cream, to taste
1 pound spaghetti
3 tablespoons butter, in pieces
3 1/2 to 4 ounces Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
1 to 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, to taste
Sea salt and fresh black pepper, to taste
1. Zest lemon and slice zest into matchsticks. Juice lemon, strain and reserve. Place zest in large nonreactive pan with wine and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium high and cook until it reduces to a syrupy mixture, about 1/4 cup, about 10 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and pour in about 1/4 cup of cream. Stir, then pour in remaining cream. Return to stove and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer until it is thickened and reduced slightly, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat.
3. Meanwhile, bring large pot of generously salted water to boil. Cook pasta until al dente; reserve 1/2 cup cooking water and drain.
4. Return hot pasta pot to stove. Pour in cream, butter and lemon juice, stir, then add hot drained pasta and a few tablespoons of cooking water. Toss together and add cheese in three or four parts, tossing each to meld with sauce. Add more cooking water if sauce is too thick and crumbly.
5. Ladle onto plates and drizzle each portion with olive oil, then add a little salt and pepper.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings