Paccheri al Cardinale

                                                                                  
    I've been told that, as a little girl, I had quite a flare for the "dramatic".  If I would begin to carry on about one thing or another, my mom would give me a little look and say, "Alright Sarah".  Why "Sarah", you ask?  After all, that's not my name.  Well, she was referring to Sarah Bernhardt, who was considered the greatest French actress of the later 19th century and one of the best-known figures in the history of the stage.  She had a reputation as a serious dramatic actress.  Now, even as a child, I knew I wasn't  being complimented.  The real message was "Tone it down a little" or "You're being a little over dramatic".

    Today, as an adult, I still enjoy drama, if done well and love things that have something special or unique about them.  This recipe encompasses all of that.  Although I've made and eaten a lot of pasta, in my day, I've never seen any pasta dish done this way before.  Pasta is tossed with a basic tomato sauce, several cheeses, and fresh basil.  Then it's covered with a layer of parchment paper and baked in the oven.  When it comes out, the parchment is cut open and the pasta is served with dollops of fresh ricotta....YUM!

Rigatoni alla Toscanini

    As I've mentioned before, Italians are pretty frugal.  If at all possible, nothing goes to waste.  Well, I recently found myself with some fresh ricotta in the fridge, left over from a recent trip to an Italian market.  I'd already used some of it to bake an orange ricotta cheesecake but still had a little bit left.
    After looking over my shelves of cookbooks, I decided to pull out one that the hubby had brought home for me quite awhile back and see what I could find.  The cookbook is called La Cucina di Andrea's. It has recipes from a well-known Northern Italian restaurant in New Orleans.  I pretty quickly found a pasta dish that happened to use the same amount of ricotta that I had left, so.....that would be dinner.  The recipe actually used penne, but rigatoni was in my cupboard so that's what I used.  A little side note.....apparently this dish was named after the famous Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini.  This is some rich, delicious tasting pasta, whoever it's named after.

Rigatoni with Red Peppers, Almonds, and Breadcrumbs

     When it's rainy and cold outside I want to stay in my house, wear soft and comfy clothes, and eat comfort food.  Yes, fall has arrived and brought with it the usual cooler temperatures and a few overcast and rainy days.  I've definitely been in the mood for some homey, comforting dishes.  This recipe really does say "comfort" to me.  I mean, what's better than a big bowl of pasta? (o.k., so we're not doing the low-carb thing right now.  Everything in moderation, I always say.)  Add a nice salad and you've got a great family meal.