Venetian Style Pasta Recipes

Steps:

• Bring beans and water (10 cups) to a boil in a 4- to 5-quart heavy pot and boil 2 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 1 hour. (Do not drain beans or discard soaking liquid.)
• Heat 1/4 cup oil in a wide 6- to 8-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then sauté onions with 1/2 teaspoon salt, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, 7 to 8 minutes. Add carrots, celery, garlic, parsley, rosemary, and pepper and sauté, stirring occasionally, 5 minutes.
• Add beans with soaking liquid and Parmigiano-Reggiano rind (if using) and simmer, covered, stirring occasionally, until beans are very tender, 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours (depending on age of beans), adding more water if necessary to keep beans covered and stirring more frequently toward end of cooking. Remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup oil and remaining 1 1/4 teaspoons salt. Cool, uncovered, 20 minutes.
• Discard rind and coarsely purée soup in batches in a blender (use caution when blending hot liquids), transferring as puréed to a large bowl.
• Return soup to pot and reheat over moderately low heat, stirring frequently and thinning soup as desired with additional water. Season with salt and pepper.
• While soup is reheating, cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente, then drain in a colander and transfer to a large bowl. Toss with remaining 2 tablespoons oil and pepper to taste.
• To serve, ladle soup into bowls and top with spoonfuls of pasta, then drizzle with oil.

Steps:

• Rinse shrimp and pat dry; cut each shrimp into ½ inch pieces.
• Add oil to a skillet large enough to hold all of the cooked pasta.
• Add in garlic, ginger, and crushed red pepper; cook over medium heat until garlic is golden, about 2 minutes.
• Add in shrimp and a big pinch of salt; cook/stir until the shrimp are cooked through, about 2 minutes.
• Add in lemon juice and wine; bring to a simmer; cook 2 minutes.
• Stir in parsley; remove from heat.
• Bring at least 4 quarts water to boil in a big pot.
• Add in 2 tablespoons salt, then the pasta; stir well, gently pushing the pasta down until it is completely covered with water.
• Cook over high heat, stirring often, until the pasta is al dente; drain pasta, reserving some cooking water.
• Add the pasta to the skillet and toss over high heat 1 minute until well mixed.
• Add a little of the cooking water, if needed.
• Remove the ginger; serve immediately.

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the duck legs and brown on all sides for about 10 mins. Remove to a plate and set aside. Add the onions to the pan and cook for 5 mins until softened. Add the garlic and cook for a further 1 min, then stir in the cinnamon and flour and cook for a further min. Return the duck to the pan, add the wine, tomatoes, stock, herbs, sugar and seasoning. Bring to a simmer, then lower the heat, cover with a lid and cook for 2 hrs, stirring every now and then.
• Carefully lift the duck legs out of the sauce and place on a plate - they will be very tender so try not to lose any of the meat. Pull off and discard the fat, then shred the meat with 2 forks and discard the bones. Add the meat back to the sauce with the milk and simmer, uncovered, for a further 10-15 mins while you cook the pasta.
• Cook the pasta following pack instructions, then drain, reserving a cup of the pasta water, and add the pasta to the ragu. Stir to coat all the pasta in the sauce and cook for 1 min more, adding a splash of cooking liquid if it looks dry. Serve with grated Parmesan, if you like.