Domenics Pasta Al Forno Recipes

PASTA AL FORNO (BAKED PASTA THE ITALIAN WAY)

Steps:

• Chop the carrot, onion, garlic and celery finely.
• Fry the vegetables in olive oil until they are softening. Be careful not to allow them to burn!
• Add the minced meat and cook until browned.
• Then add the tomato concentrate and stir well
• Add the glass of wine and stir well again
• When the wine has evaporated pour in the tomato pulp and mix it in well with the meat.
• Add the basil leaves and salt and pepper as required.
• Cover the sauce and allow to simmer on a low heat for at least an hour, stirring occasionally so it doesn't stick. If it gets too thick add some water.
• 15 minutes before the sauce is ready add the peas.
• Put salted water on to boil for the pasta. Cook the pasta 2-3 minutes less than instructed on the packet. Strain and add the pasta to the meat sauce when it is ready.
• Mix the pasta and sauce well and allow to cool.
• Put a layer of pasta with sauce on the bottom of an oven dish.
• Make another layer with thick pieces of mozzarella.
• Add another layer of pasta with meat sauce and again some mozzarella
• Finish with a layer of pasta.
• Sprinkle with parmesan and bake in a pre-heated oven 180-200° until the top layer starts to crisp (30-40 mins)

PASTA AL FORNO

Steps:

• Heat olive oil in a skillet over low heat. Add onions and cook slowly until moisture has evaporated but onions are not dark brown, about 5 minutes. Add ground beef and bacon. Increase heat to medium-high and cook, stirring frequently, until meat is browned and crumbly, 5 to 7 minutes.
• Pour wine into the skillet and cook until evaporated, 1 to 3 minutes. Add chopped tomatoes and tomato paste. Fill tomato paste can with water and pour in. Reduce heat to a simmer and cook sauce, uncovered, until oil no longer appears on the surface, about 30 minutes. Add sugar and salt; cook and stir until dissolved, about 3 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook the rotini pasta at a boil for about 5 minutes; drain and rinse with cold water. Return pasta to the pot and add a splash of olive oil to prevent sticking.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease two 9x13-inch baking dishes.
• Add about 1 cup sauce and 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese to the pot with the cooked pasta.
• Spoon a thin layer of pasta into each prepared baking dish. Top each with a thin layer of provolone and mozzarella cheeses. Add sauce. Repeat layers with remaining pasta, cheeses, and sauce; finish with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.
• Bake in the preheated oven until hot and melted, 30 to 45 minutes.

DOMENIC'S PASTA AL FORNO

Steps:

• Brown ground beef in a pan with a splash of water, stirring frequently to break it up into very small pieces.
• Meanwhile, saute the onions in oil in a large saucepan. When they have turned limp and transparent, add the garlic and cook for a further minute or two.
• Add the beef to the vegetables. Stir in the sugar, tomatoes and tomato paste. You may also need to add in some water to obtain the correct consistency - this needs to be a bit thinner than a traditional pasta sauce. Simmer for about an hour.
• With about 15 or 20 minutes left, check the consistency of the sauce again. Add water, if required, as well as seasonings.
• Preheat oven to 350°F.
• Melt butter in a small saucepan.
• Add flour and 1 cup of milk to a sealable jar and shake well until the flour is distributed throughout the milk. Add this mixture slowly to the butter, stirring constantly. Repeat with remaining milk and paprika.
• Continue heating, stirring constantly, until the sauce begins to thicken. Again, this does not need to be a thick sauce.
• Cook ziti for about 7 minutes in a pot of salted boiling water. The ziti will only be about half cooked at this point. Drain, reserving about a cup of water to thin the sauce, if necessary.
• Mix the pasta with tomato sauce, bechamel sauce, and mozzarella cheese. Stir well to combine and melt cheese. There should be enough sauce to just cover the pasta. Pour the mixture into a large baking dish.
• If you have some tomato sauce left, spoon it lightly over top of the pasta for a bit of extra colour. Sprinkle with parmesan, cover, and bake for about 40 minutes. The pasta will finish cooking during this time, and the excess liquid will be absorbed!
• Allow to stand for a few minutes before serving.

PASTA AL FORNO

Steps:

• For the pesto: Put the spinach, basil, nuts, olive oil, Parmesan, garlic and lemon juice in a food processor and pulse until well combined. Transfer to a bowl and stir in some salt and pepper.
• For the pasta: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the shells and cook until al dente, about 10 minutes. Drain and set aside, making sure to reserve a cup or so of pasta-cooking liquid.
• While the pasta cooks, mix the ricotta with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and some salt and pepper in a small bowl. Mix the breadcrumbs with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the Parmesan cheese, lemon zest and some salt and pepper in another small bowl.
• When the pasta is ready, put it in a large bowl and mix in the pesto, tomatoes, and enough reserved cooking liquid to make a sauce. Transfer the mixture to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, dollop with the seasoned ricotta and top with the breadcrumb mixture. Bake until golden and bubbly, 25 to 30 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before serving.

PASTA AL FORNO

Steps:

• For the sauce: Cover the bottom of a medium saucepan with oil and garlic and cook over medium heat until garlic browns. Add sauce, basil, salt and pepper. Cook on medium heat for 15 minutes.
• For the pappardelle pasta: Make a bed of all-purpose flour, then make a well and add eggs. Fold all together, adding in more flour if needed, and knead until a dough ball is formed, then set aside and cover for 30 minutes.
• Run dough through a pasta sheeter to form pappardelle pasta (broad flat noodles).
• For the meatballs: Combine the beef, pork, veal, panko, Parmesan, salt, pepper and eggs in a bowl. Mixture should be on the drier side. If need be, add more panko. Form quarter-size meatballs. Heat a medium frying pan with oil and fry each meatball to a golden brown color.
• For the pasta al forno: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Add sauce to a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, along with the ricotta. Stir together, then add mozzarella and the meatballs. Let the cheese melt down.
• Meanwhile, drop the pasta into boiling salted water for about 7 minutes. Strain and add to the baking dish. Mix around, then bake in oven for 10 minutes.

MEATBALL PASTA BAKE (PASTA AL FORNO)

Steps:

• Mix the grated onion, 1 crushed garlic clove, mince, breadcrumbs, milk, parmesan and parsley in a large bowl. Season well with salt and pepper. Mash the mixture together with your hands until combined. Mould the mix into small balls (about walnut-sized) with damp hands. There will be about 20 meatballs.
• Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a deep frying pan and fry the meatballs for 6-8 mins until golden brown all over. Fry in batches if you need to - they don't need to be cooked through, just browned on the outside. Set aside on a plate.
• Heat the remaining 1 tbsp olive oil in the pan and fry the chopped onion for 5 mins until softened. Add the remaining garlic, fry for another minute, then add the chopped tomatoes and simmer for 10 mins until thickened and the tomatoes have broken down. Season well with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta for 5 mins less than the pack instructions state, in boiling salted water. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Stir the meatballs into the tomato sauce, adding a splash of water if too thick, and bring to a simmer. Drain the pasta and tip into an ovenproof dish. Pour over the sauce and meatballs and mix well. Stir in most of the mozzarella, then scatter the remaining over the top. Bake for 15-20 mins until the cheese is golden and bubbling, and the top is slightly crisp.

PASTA FAGIOLI AL FORNO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Cook pasta according to package directions for al dente; drain., Meanwhile, drain tomatoes, reserving juices; coarsely chop tomatoes. In a 6-qt. stockpot, cook and crumble sausage with onion, carrot, celery and garlic over medium-high heat until no longer pink, 6-8 minutes; drain. Stir in tomato paste, seasonings, chopped tomatoes and reserved juices; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 10 minutes., Stir in beans and 1/4 cup each Parmesan cheese and parsley. Stir in pasta. Transfer to a greased 13x9-in. baking dish; sprinkle with fontina cheese and remaining Parmesan cheese., Bake, covered, 20 minutes. Uncover; bake until cheese is melted, 10-15 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining parsley. Freeze option: Cool unbaked casserole; cover and freeze. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight. Remove from refrigerator 30 minutes before baking. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake casserole as directed, increasing time as necessary to heat through and for a thermometer inserted in center to read 165°.