casareccia

It's that lean time of the year. New plantings are going in and lettuces are getting close to being ready but in the garden there's only kale, cime di rapa (a leafy brassica), silverbeet, leeks, celery and a bit of parsley.
A nice pasta dish can be made with cime di rapa and/or kale. This could be made with orechiette (little ears) or casareccia, which although means "home-made" in Italian, usually isn't.
To make casareccia, make a stiff but just pliable dough with 4 cups durum wheat flour (we are currently using some Australian grown and milled stuff called Bellata gold which is great) and about 1 1/4 cups of water and 1/2 tsp salt, knead it well and let it rest in a plastic bag. Resting relaxes the gluten and allows the pasta to be worked without springing back.
Roll the dough into sausages about 2cm in diameter. On a lightly floured cutting board use a sharp, small knife to cut off a disc about 3mm thick then use the flat of the blade and "smear" the dough away from you with the sharp edge of the blade pointing towards the sausage of dough.


Because of the strength of the dough, it won't actually smear but will roll itself into a loose, folded spiral that emerges magically from the blade.

To make the "sauce", heat 1/4 cup of good olive oil (we use extra virgin Tasmanian made by Rocky Caccavo at Campania), add 2 anchovies and allow them to dissolve in the oil then add two diced onions and fry until transparent. Add 1/2 cup of pinenuts and allow them to colour a little before adding 5 cloves of chopped garlic and about 1 dozen chopped cherry tomatoes (our frozen ones from last summer). Once the tomatoes soften add 3 packed cups of chopped cime di rapa or kale or both. Mix in, put the lid on and allow the greens to wilt briefly.
After cooking the pasta in plenty of salted, boiling water, drain and toss with the sauce and a generous extra amount of olive oil and salt to taste. Serve with grated cheese, chilli and pepper.