Amare Ristorante’s Orecchiette Pugliesi
Miami Beach’s Amare Ristorante is known for its authentically prepared Southern Italian fare served in a glamorous setting reminiscent of Italy’s Amalfi Coast. “Our orecchiette Pugliesi is quite possibly the most iconic recipe from the Puglia region and is often served at holiday gatherings,” says owner Gino Iovino. “The broccoli rabe almost melts together with the pasta. This is a result of the old Pugliese technique of boiling pasta and vegetables together and then sautéing them in garlic, oil and anchovies. The flavor is so subtle that even people who don’t care for anchovies love this dish.”
RECIPE
Serves 4
Ingredients:
11 oz fresh orecchiette pasta
2 pounds turnip tops (broccoli rabe)
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
4 fillets desalted Cetara anchovies
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Small piece of peperoncino (optional)
Method:
- Clean the turnip tops, taking care to remove the hardest parts. Rinse them and then drop into boiling salted water.
- After 2-3 minutes, add the orecchiette that will cook with the turnips. (In doing so, they will take their aroma and some of the color.)
- Meanwhile, in a pan, prepare the base that will be used to season the orecchiette. Sauté the garlic in the oil, adding in the fillets of desalted anchovy and peperoncino (optional) that slowly melt together and the anchovies start to break down (2-3 minutes).
- Once cooked, drain the pasta and add it to the base, mixing everything.
- Serve in a deep dish.
1 Collins Ave., Miami Beach; 305.731.6999; amareristorante.com
