As young children, my brother, sister and I spent countless hours at my grandparents’ home. Although for us it seemed an eternal drive to get to their house, most of our aunts, uncles and cousins lived near them. So no matter the time of year – or day – being at Nonna and Gramps’ house ensured we would be surrounded by family. We would run through the field near their house, play in any of the numerous cars in need of repair which my uncle had parked in the yard, swim in the lake, walk to our cousin’s house a short distance away – we never needed to look for something to do. In truth, there never seemed to be enough time to fit in all the activities we could do.
One thing for sure, we never missed meal time. And we always ate well.
My Nonna was an incredible cook. If I had realized that at a young enough age, I would have spent fewer hours doing what children do and more hours watching and learning from her. She could make a simple salad dressing, with the most basic of ingredients, somehow taste amazing.
The process of making pasta is not complicated. Years ago, as an adult, my brother spent a day cooking with Nonna. When he asked for a recipe, Nonna stated simply, “Eggs and flour.” She then took out her pasta board, and began to shape a mound of flour before adding eggs. That pasta board, by the way, is a family heirloom. When my Nonna passed several years back, she was living with my Aunt Judy. So Aunt Judy naturally took possession of the pasta board. My brother asked my aunt if he could take the board…Have you ever gotten “the eye” from an Italian? We’ll just say it’s unlikely that board will be leaving Aunt Judy’s kitchen for a very long time.
As the recipe for pasta really is that simple, I’m sharing another of my Nonna’s secret recipes along with our family’s legendary marinara sauce.
Nonna’s Gnocchi
Ingredients
- •710 ml (3 cups) dry instant potatoes
- •Salt
- •2 eggs
- •688 grams (5½ cups) all-purpose flour, or as needed
Preparation
In a large bowl, combine the dry potatoes with 5 ml (1 teaspoon) salt and 828 ml (3 1/2 cups) hot water. Mix until well-blended. Add eggs, mix again, and allow to cool.
Add flour by gradually dusting it over the potato mixture and blending it in lightly, without packing it down. Continue until the dough is pliable and can be shaped into long ropes; it may not be necessary to use all the flour.
Roll portions of the dough into ropes about 2.5 cm (1 inch) in diameter. Cut each rope into pieces about 1.9 cm (3/4 inch) long.
To cook the gnocchi, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the gnocchi in batches and stir the pot so they don’t stick together. The gnocchi will sink to the bottom and rise to the surface as they cook. Using a slotted spoon, remove the gnocchi from the water about 30 seconds after they rise to the surface. Transfer to a bowl of sauce and proceed with remaining dough.
Papa’s Marinara Sauce
Ingredients
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) olive oil
- •2 medium onions, diced
- •2 medium garlic cloves, crushed
- •340 grams (12 ounces) canned tomato paste
- •3.6 kg (8 pounds) ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
- •30 ml (2 tablespoons) sugar
- •15 ml (1 tablespoon) oregano
- •59 ml (¼ cup) fresh basil
- •10 ml (2 teaspoons) salt
- •1 bay leaf
Preparation
In a large saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil and sauté onions and garlic until tender, about 5 minutes.
Stir in tomato paste and cook 3 minutes more.
Add tomatoes, sugar, oregano, basil, salt, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover partially, and simmer until reduced and thickened, stirring occasionally, about two hours.