3-17…Pappardelle with Radicchio and Arugula

Tonight is a first.  I’ve never cooked with radicchio but have been seeing it from time to time in recipes.  I found one in one of my cook books – the pasta bible – that also uses arugula, and since I had some of Christy’s arugula left over, it fit the bill.

INGREDIENTS:

Pappardelle from Al Dente Pasta

Olive oil

Radicchio (1/2 a head finely chopped)

Arugula, coarsely chopped

Garlic and onion

Red wine

Celery

Caponata

Pancetta ( bacon can be used)

PROCESS:

Cook the pancetta, then add the garlic, onion, and celery and cook until soft.  Add the radicchio and a splash of wine and cook until soft.  At this point I tasted the sauce and found it too bitter; to counter this I decided to add a heaping tablespoon of caponata.  This effectively reduced the bitterness.

The cooked pasta is added to the pan, along with the arugula and mixed well.  Drizzle with olive oil and serve.

COMMENTS:

This  was very good; a distinctly different taste from what I’m used to.  I will do this again, substituting sweet vermouth for the red wine.  Another option is to add fresh eggplant instead of the caponat.