The Cookbook Club Goes to Italy

Joanne Tracey over at Brookford Kitchen Diaries has started up a monthly cookbook club and the rules such as they are are loose enough that it's easy to follow along and participate. I had taken a short hiatus from participating but I could not resist this month's theme-- Italy! 

I love Italian food!  

I got this book from our local library:

 

I did not know Rocco Dispirito but I loved this book. It was filled with family memories and photos and so many delicious looking recipes. 

We ended up picking Orecchiette with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe to make.  

I did have to make a few substitutions. This recipe only serves 4 so I had to double it and I only had penne on hand so we used that. I didn't have enough sausage so my son suggested we use a bit of bacon too and that was delicious! I subbed out broccoli florets for the broccoli rabe and even used garlic scapes in place of the garlic (what can I say; I think of recipes as a guide line!)

Here's what we used and what we did:

1 16 ounce box protein enriched penne pasta

4 cups broccoli fresh broccoli florets; washed and cut into bite sized pieces

2 Tablespoons olive oil

4 garlic scapes

a good sprinkle of crushed red pepper flakes

3 sweet Italian sausage links broken into bite sized pieces

1/2 pound of bacon sliced into bite sized pieces

4 cups chicken broth

salt & pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese-- maybe 1/4 cup or so?

In a large pot I boiled water for the pasta; cooking it for just 7 of the 8 minutes the box calls for before adding in the broccoli for that final minute.

While the pasta was cooking I used a large sauce pan and heated up the oil; sauteing the garlic until fragrant then adding in the red pepper flakes. I also added in the sausage and bacon and kept stirring until all the meat was cooked through.


  Once the meat was done I added in the chicken broth and brought it to a boil. Then we tossed in the drained pasta and broccoli. I sprinkled on some salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese then served it. 


 I hadn't been expecting so much broth so we quickly swapped out our plates for bowls. We all agreed it was absolutely delicious and such a nice, light pasta dish for our hot summer weather. 


I was worried about the bacon since it obviously wasn't going to be crispy anymore after being in the broth but it mostly tasted like a really thin sliced ham. You could also cook the bacon on the side and crumble it on top just before serving if you wanted to maintain that crispiness. 


Linking up with:



 


Comments

  1. This looks really good! I've had to do the same thing with some dishes that ended up being more liquidy than I anticipated- using bowls instead of plates. I like how you modified the recipe to use what you had on hand. I do that quite a bit as well. I know what we like and have enough confidence that my modifications will enhance, and not detract, with the understanding that my final dish will not be exactly as described by the recipe creator....

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    1. Yeah, I'm usually pretty confident with my modifications too. I think it's one reason I prefer cooking to baking-- I'm not nearly as good with improvising there!

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  2. This looks like a fabulous meal, lots of colour with the greens! I also use recipes as a guide, as it's hard to have everything in the cupboard.
    Thanks for sharing with us for #wwwhimsy
    Deb #Teamwwwhimsy

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  3. Wow! That looks and sounds amazing! Italian good is our fave :)

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  4. This looks like a wonderful cookbook and what a great recipe to choose. The meal looks delicious!

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  5. Jodie's Touch of StyleJuly 9, 2025 at 12:18 PM

    This sounds amazing :)
    XOOX
    Jodie

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  6. That looks delicious! I have never had broccoli rabe, but I’d love to try it someday. You are so much braver than I am when it comes to substituting!

    https://marshainthemiddle.com/

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    1. I don't think I have ever had broccoli rabe either but I'm sure I'd love it.

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  7. oh. 350 calories? I need this book! Ha! #WWWhimsy

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    1. Well, as my culinary student pointed out it's easy to make any meal 350 calories or less if you manipulate serving sizes! Now I can't say for sure that is what they did with each recipe as I didn't read them all but 4 servings with 1/2 a box of pasta sounded right to me.

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  8. Yum! The pasta looks so delicious. I love Italian food, and it’s great how you were able to substitute ingredients. I do that a lot, and that’s one of the things I love about cooking main meals. It’s not the same with baking! Years ago, I ran out of plain flour and used wholemeal instead when I made a pineapple cake. Ugh—it turned out so dense. A major fail!
    Ruth@playworkeatrepeat

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    1. Thank you! I do find substitutions are so much easier with cooking than with baking. I don't have the intuitive sense for what works with what when it comes to baking. It is so much more of a science!

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  9. Yum, yum yum! That's my kind of dish. Great to see you back here.

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  10. That looks absolutely delicious and I have to say that I adore Italian food too! Thanks for sharing the photos and recipe with us at #WWWhimsy ! xo

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  11. We love Italian food. Especially withth a lot of vegetables.

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    1. We love Italian food too and I'm slowly getting my boys to eat more veggies... but it's painstaking to find some they all eat willingly.

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  12. I remember that chef from past Food Network shows. I do love broccoli rabe and there's nothing better than pasta! What a fun "club" to be part of!

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    1. It really is a lot of fun and Jo is quite relaxed in her "rules."

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  13. Joanne, I make a dish like this using only broccoli rabe and pasta or I will sometimes add in the sausage. My father-in-law who was from Italy taught me how to make saute broccoli rabe. Your version look so good.

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