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September 14, 2007
Secret Sauce kicks off its premiere TODAY show appearance with famed chef Rocco DiSpirito of NBC's hit show, The Restaurant.
In his forthcoming book, Real Life Recipes, Rocco takes favorite foods he grew up eating and shares them as revamped, quick and easy dishes for our own homes.
Uncle Joe's Sausage & Orecchiette with Broccoli Rabe, Rocco's most favorite recipe, is inspired by his late uncle.
Rocco tells us a little about why good food and family are two of life’s best ingredients:
My uncle Joe has worn many hats in his life. First and foremost, he was a butcher. He died unexpectedly last November, but left us many great memories. Because of his spirit and who he was, they are all attached to food of some kind. This is one of my favorite recipes from one of my favorite people.
Uncle Joe followed my mom to the United States from Italy in the early 1960’s and worked hard to craft his own little American dream. In Italy, life isn’t just something you get through till something better comes along. Life is a series of moments to be savored and marked by laughter, great food, wine and the people you love around you. Uncle Joe had many people who he loved and that loved him.
My uncle’s house on Long Island was a smaller American version of a sunny hillside Tuscan villa. He had a basement cantina full of carefully handcrafted wine, a garage brimming with homemade soppressata, salami, coppa and aging provolone cheese hanging from the rafters, a picturesque trellis of white grapes to sleep under on hot summer days, pet rabbits to play with and lush gardens to run in. And all of it, every bite of fresh basil and garden grown tomato sauce, would be valueless without people to enjoy them with.
My uncle Joe made it clear by his sense of humor, his generosity, and his big heart full of love—that he understood this deeply. His teachings have been my greatest lessons. His charitable spirit and his wonderful home created a community of friends and family so carefree and relaxed that it was impossible to not be reminded of what life is supposed to be about.
He spent most of late summer every year making what Italians call salume (preserved meats of every kind, sausages, soppressata, salami) and preserving summer tomatoes and making wine. His sausages were a particular favorite of mine. I still have some soppressata from last year!
In the spirit of Uncle Joe, I am including the recipe for Orecchiette here for those who want to stop and take some time to make this recipe for your family.
—Rocco
Procedure
- Bring 3 quarts of water to a boil in a stock pot. Season the water with salt until the water tastes like the ocean. Pour the orecchiette into boiling water and stir. Cook for 8-10 minutes for dried and about 4 minutes for fresh.
- Heat a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the olive oil and, when hot, add the smashed garlic cloves to the pan and brown them. With a fork or the edge of a spoon, smash the garlic cloves and move them around to brown all sides.
- Add the sausage and broccoli rabe to the boiling water with the pasta 3 minutes before the pasta is cooked. Let it all cook, uncovered, until the sausage is cooked and the broccoli is bright green and tender, but not mushy.
- Drain the pasta, the sausage and the broccoli rabe all together and add to the pan with the olive oil and garlic and toss.
- Add the chicken stock and toss.
- Add the red pepper flakes and season with salt and fresh pepper.
- Sprinkle parmigiano reggiano on top and serve.
Yields 4 servings.
About the Chef:
Rocco DiSpirito was born and raised in Jamaica, Queens. His culinary experience began at age eleven in his mother Nicolina's kitchen.
Rocco entered the Culinary Institute of America at age 16, and at 18 began working for legendary chefs all over the globe. After graduating cum laude in business from Boston University, he jumped into the New York restaurant scene.
In 1995 Rocco opened Dava, earning two stars from Ruth Reichl at The New York Times, calling his cooking “carefully considered exotica.” At 31, Rocco opened Union Pacific, which received 3 stars from The New York Times. In 1999 Rocco was named one of Food and Wine magazine’s “Best New Chefs,” and in 2000 was the first chef to become Gourmet magazine’s “America’s Most Exciting Young Chef.”
DiSpirito opened Rocco's 22nd Street in the summer of 2003 while cameras for NBC's The Restaurant watched and took notes. That summer, more than nine million viewers tuned in weekly to see the ups and downs of DiSpirito's family-inspired eatery. The second series aired in the spring of 2004. He has appeared on numerous television shows including, David Letterman, Jay Leno, The Today Show, Oprah and Top Chef.
Rocco won the James Beard award for his cookbook Flavor and has since authored Rocco's Five Minute Flavor and Rocco’s Italian American with his mother, Nicolina.
His latest cookbook venture, Real Life Recipes, is available online and in stores on November 6th.
Rocco is an avid cyclist, recently completing several triathlons and a Half Ironman competition in St.Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands.
Rocco lives in New York City with his dog Teesha and his cat Pumpkin.
Visit Rocco on the web and learn some tasty shortcuts in kitchen with Bertolli @ whatsyourmedstyle.com
