cabbage pieces penetrate the rigatoni

Cabbage pieces penetrate the rigatoni interior

Every fall my family prepared “bagna calda,” a luscious Italian communal vegetable dip meal. We dipped slices of fall vegetables  in a hot concotion of olive oil, butter, lots and lots of garlic and anchovies. Joke was none of the family teens could go out on a date after a “bagna calda” meal because their breath would haunt all non-Italians, particularly a non-Italian who hadn’t also eaten “Bagna Calda” for dinner.

My favorite vegetable to dip into the bagna calda pot was cabbage. The fecund earthiness of the cabbage and its crisp round watery snap, the heaviness of oil, salty anchovies, and pungent , stinky garlic.  Just perfect.

So. Finding several newly harvested cabbage heads in my refrigerator, garlic, anchovies and gallon tank of high quality olive oil in my pantry, I thought: hmmm– bagna calda pasta. Why hadn’t I thought to make it years ago?

Here it is in all its glory. Totally delicious, garlicky and incestuously restrictive in its kissing aftereffects. Meaning: you’ll want to stay home and kiss who ever ate dinner with you. In my case, my husband.

• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 2 T butter or ghee
• 4 cloves garlic diced
• 1 tin flat anchovies
• 1/2 large head of cabbage chopped into small squares
• 5 basil leaves ripped into small pieces
• 15 peppercorns crushed
• 1 lb. rigatoni

In a your largest skillet saute the garlic for a few minutes in the oil and ghee before adding the anchovies. Put lid over the skillet after adding the anchovies so you won’t have to clean your stove top.  The anchovies cause splatter.

Add the cabbage. The reason it’s chopped into small squares is so that some of the cabbage will slip inside the rigatoni holes. If the cabbage is cut too large, or too long, this merging of cabbage with rigatoni interior space won’t happen.

Fold  the oil over the cabbage and saute for a few minutes. The put the lid over the skillet. turn off the heat and let the cabbage cook for about 3-4 minutes. Check it.  Cabbage should be soft but still crisp, green but not raw. Add the ripped pieces of basil.  Then take the lid off the skillet or else the cabbage will continue to cook and be soggy and limp. NOt what we want.

When the rigatoni is cooked, reserve a half cup of the cooking water. Add the rigatoni to the cabbage/garlic/anchovy mix.  Fold the vegetables from the bottom of the skillet to the top. Don’t be too aggressive. Add the hot water from the pasta pot, crush the pepper cornsand add to the skillet. Fold a bit more.

Serve. ( NO cheese!!)