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Stracnar with Sausage and Pepper Ragù – more with a cavarola board
Stracnar and Stracenate, 2 names, 2 regions, 1 pasta
It is the height of summer here in Southern California, and I’ve been busy with frozen desserts, but a family has to eat. In between grilled steaks, chops and lots of salads we enjoy pasta tossed with hearty sauces of meat, tomatoes and herbs.
This dish comes from Southern Italy where the days are hot and the sun is high. The regions of Italy’s south, known collectively as the Mezzogiorno, include Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Molise, Puglia, Sardinia, and Sicily. This large swath of the country has long been regarded as separate, divided linguistically and culturally from the north. Even today, over one hundred and fifty years after unification, Italians proudly proclaim their own region’s unique heritage, and enjoy the same foods as their ancestors. Read the remainder of this entry »
Ravioli alla cavarola
Quilted ravioli
Mom’s pink satin quilt. Filled with the finest goose down, it was the epitome of bedroom comfort. She did not use it all the time. It was a special sort of a quilt, one we kids used only when we were sick. Good and sick, and the arrival of the quilt meant that this sore throat, belly ache or earache was the real deal.
My mom was not the kind of mom who ran to the doctor for every little thing. Not even close. Just ask my brothers and sister if you do not believe me. That is why we knew that when we got the quilt something serious was cooking. It meant that at any moment Dr. Cobley, the family pediatrician, might walk into the bedroom. Yes, Virginia, I am that old. I came of age in the era when physicians made house calls. Read the remainder of this entry »
Stracenate, Stracnar and a Cavarola Board
“…This is another of those great old pastas that must be made manually and is disappearing, but let us revive it…”
– Giuliano Bugialli, in Bugialli on Pasta
Everything old is new again. No jive. Question: What’s a cavarola? Answer: a small rectangular wooden board with a herringbone surface used to make some of the traditional pastas of Italy’s Mezzogiorno. These household boards are relatively small, usually about 12 inches long and 8 inches wide. They can be made from any wood – fruit woods and beech being very commonly used. The herringbone pattern is carved into one side of the board, and is transferred to the pasta with a rolling pin. The resulting pasta is unique, lovely to look at and the irregular surface holds condimenti better than any smooth pasta ever could. Read the remainder of this entry »