Recipes Featured in this Article
Stanley Tucci, Oscar-nominated actor, filmmaker, cookbook author and host of food and travel documentary series “Searching for Italy,” is stopping by the TODAY kitchen to whip up a couple of his go-to vegetable-forward recipes: super comforting pasta fagioli (pasta and bean soup) and a pasta sauce he learned to make from a Florentine family friend and uses on the regular.
When you think of some of your most beloved recipes, many of them are incredibly simple at heart. Bonus points if those tried and true recipes are ones that have been passed down throughout your family for generations. That’s the case with Stanley Tucci’s recipes for pasta fagioli and Maria Rosa sauce.
The flavorful tomato sauce can be traced back to Florence, Italy, where Maria Rosa herself taught Tucci’s mother how to make the recipe. A handful of standard sauce ingredients combine to create something versatile and uncomplicated. It starts with mirepoix (a combination of onions, carrots and celery) that are sautéed in butter and olive oil. A few garlic cloves are added to boost the flavor, followed by canned whole plum tomatoes. The tomatoes can also be crushed by hand so you can keep the sauce as smooth or chunky as you like.
If you’re not using this tomato sauce for saucy pasta dishes or chicken Parmesan, you can use it as the base for a brothy bowl of pasta fagioli. Much like said tomato sauce, this dish is substantial yet quick and easy. Build flavor with sautéed onions and garlic, in addition to the tomato sauce and a good quality chicken or vegetable stock. Canned white beans, mini pasta and a few generous handfuls of chopped Tuscan kale round everything out, making it a hearty and substantial meal that you can enjoy any night of the week.
The year my family was living in Florence my sister Gina became best friends with a young girl named Mirca. My parents in turn became friends with Mirca’s parents — Vittorio, who was a policeman, and his wife, Maria Rosa. To this day they remain friends, phoning throughout the year and visiting whenever they have the opportunity. Maria Rosa taught my mother how to make this sauce. We serve Salsa alla Maria Rosa with penne, farfalle, ziti or any other long tubular pasta such as rotini or fusilli. This sauce freezes very well.
As I said, for almost two years, with the exception of stocks and broths, I ate a primarily vegetarian diet. The following dish was a staple, as it was easy to swallow and basically contained all the nutrients I needed to keep myself healthy. I can honestly say that after all this time I am still not sick of it because it’s really delicious. This recipe, along with scrambled eggs, oatmeal and various soups, basically kept me going and helped rebuild my strength.
