Simply start by making a quick marinara sauce by sauteing in some hot olive oil; one half of a small onion, a finely chopped garlic, and adding half of a finely chopped carrot and celery stick. This will take under five minutes. Add a large can of tomatoes and allow to simmer while preparing the rapini. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Step two: Cook the rapini as shown below (earlier post on preparing rapini/rape)
Step three: Rinse and drain one can of chick peas. Toss into the rapini which has been sauteed in olive oil and garlic. Cook for a minute or two to allow the flavours to infuse.
Step four: Add the marinara sauce to the rapini and chick peas mixture. Cook for a minute or two, grate some fresh parmesan cheese on-top, toss and serve hot. Delicious served with homemade foccaccia.(check out the no knead easy bread recipe which makes great focaccia )
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Mom's Basic Rapini and Garlic Recipe
1 bunch rapini
4 tablespoons extra virgin oil
3-4 cloves garlic peeled and sliced
1/4 teaspoon dried red chili flakes or more for extra heat
salt to taste
Begin by washing the rapini and cutting about an 1 inch off the stem. To allow for more even cooking with a knife, split about 1-2 inches down the center of the lower part of the rapini stem. This allows for more even cooking. Wash the rapini under cold water and drain. Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil. I add salt to the boiling water as you would do, when cooking pasta. Drop the rapini in the salted boiling water and cook for about 1 minutes until "a la dente".
Strain the rapini and place it immediately in a large bowl filled with ice water. Strain and remove the excess water by wringing the rapini with your hands or paper towel. Cut into 3 pieces and set aside. In a frying pan heat the oil and add the garlic slices and red chili flakes. Saute the garlic until a golden colour. Add the rapini as shown in the photo, away from the sizzling oil as it tends to splatter, and continue cooking on medium heat to infuse the flavours, for about 1 to 2 minutes. Do not over cook. Season with salt. Serve as a side dish or toss into a hot pasta and tomato sauce dish. So from my family to yours, buon appetito!
Oh, I am totally making this. Yes I'm STILL eating candy and chocolate leftover from christmas but I'm also working my way to detoxing from all of that. Rapini would do wonders, I think :)
ReplyDeleteWhat the heck is rapini and where does one find it? What does it taste like? Interesting. I love the colors in this dish and I can tell it is very flavorful.
ReplyDeleteOh! Oh! Oh! Actually have the rapini - and everything else. Love the red pepper at the end and just loving this!
ReplyDeletewow looks very yummy, we don't get rapini here
ReplyDeletewow,looks tasty Anna !From now on will be detoxing time!
ReplyDeleteHi Roxan, It is nice to get back to the basics. Glad you liked the recipe. Really super simple.
ReplyDeleteHey Merut, Thanks to Wikipedia, here is the official run down on...."Rapini (also known as Broccoli Rabe (or Raap or Raab), Broccoletti, Broccoli di Rape,....is a common vegetable in the cuisines of Southern Italy (in particular Puglia and Sicily), Galicia, China, and Portugal... Rapini is classified scientifically as Brassica rapa subspecies rapa,[2] in the same subspecies as the turnip"
ReplyDeleteOnce a vegetable to be found only in Italian grocery stores or at the local market,rapini has become quite "mainstream" and easy to find. In, Montreal,it is now carried bythe major grocery stores.
Hi Claudia, everyone in my family loves rapini. I think it safe to say it is the family's favourite vegetable. Normally we eat it with just some fried garlic and hot chili but it is really is quite versatile. I'm happy the post was a reminder for you. Hope you post your dish.
ReplyDeleteHi Ami, rapini is similar to Chinese broccoli. Also delicious served alone, fried in some oil, garlic and hot chili flakes.
ReplyDeleteCiao Chiara, thanks for dropping by. As much as we love the holidays and the amazing food, it is nice to get back to more simple meals.
ReplyDeletesuch a pretty and healthy dish! I'd top it off with a poached egg and maybe some cheese ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks for the suggestion Olga.
ReplyDeleteit has nothing to do with Chinese broccoli. it grows wild on the hillsides of Puglia and if you are lucky enough to taste it in Italy, it is almost sweet. the BEST green for your body, period.
ReplyDelete