"Americans do not know true Italian cuisine, they think it's heavy, all pasta and pizza. Instead it is full of fresh vegetables that change from one month to another, of traditional recipes with few ingredients, excellent in their simplicity .

Domenica Marchetti, born in the USA from mother from Abruzzo, she grew up in one Italian family, learning to make gnocchi and ravioli as soon as she and her sister "were tall enough to reach the kitchen floor", as she says in her blog.

Merit of the mother, excellent cook and guardian of our recipes tradition; but also of the summer holidays with the family in Abruzzo, where food – cooking, eating, talking around a table – it was the center of life. A strong cultural heritage that is hard to ignore.

After dealing with various topics as a journalist, Domenica felt the need to return to the roots and share, with articles and books, our authentic family kitchen: "The food I cook is the food I love to eat and offer others simple and honest dishes …".

Domenica Marchetti is born New York and lived in the United States but Italian blood flows in his veins. After one graduated from Columbia University's School of Journalism (N. Y.) and some years of journalistic career, today Sunday is dedicated to the world of food at 360 °.

Such as food writer writes articles (The Washington Post, Cooking Light, Fine Cooking, Food and Wine) e books (see next page), blog and Instagram account; but also holds cooking lessons and organizes gastronomic tours in his beloved Abruzzo, for small groups of enthusiasts.

Kitchen to preserve

Domenica Marchetti is author of seven books on Italian home cooking, from The Glorious Soups and Stews of Italy (2006, on soups and stews) a Preserving Italy (2016, on canned), passing by The Glorious Pasta of Italy (2011), the most successful one. Monothematic, the texts also have the purpose of hand down recipes family members, and give space to artisans of the food that Domenica met in person during his travels in Italy.

texts by Marina Cella
video by Diego Stadiotti

BLT bucatini with pancetta, rocket and cherry tomatoes

“The BLT (bacon-lettuce-tomato) is one of the most famous sandwiches in the United States, typical of American diner food. It is grilled with white bread spread with butter and stuffed with smoked bacon (bacon), lettuce and tomato.

For my book "The Glorious Pasta of Italy" I had the idea of ​​"translating" this sandwich and doing it as pasta. So I created the recipe for BLT bucatini, that is the bucatini seasoned with the same ingredients. Instead of bacon I used bacon, and instead of lettuce the rocket ”.

for 6 people
500 g of bucatini – 700 g of cherry tomatoes – 1 small clove of garlic – 170 g of diced bacon – 2 handfuls of rocket (about 150 g) – 60 g of grated pecorino romano – extra virgin olive oil – salt – pepper

– Turn on the oven at 165 °. Wash the i Cherry tomatoes, cut them in half and arrange them, with the part cut upwards, on a plaque lined with baking paper. toss with 60 ml of oil, salt and pepper.

–Bake the tomatoes and cook them for 60-90 minutes, until they are a little withered but still juicy. Remove them from the oven and transfer them to a bowl with their sauce. Bring a saucepan to boil with plenty of salted water.

-Meanwhile heat a tablespoon of oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic in a slightly crushed shirt and let it jump for a couple of minutes to flavor the oil. Remove the garlic, add the pancetta and cook it for 8-10 minutes, until it begins to release the fat and become Crisp. Add the cherry tomatoes, stir and cook for about 5 minutes.

–Cook the bucatini in the pot of boiling water and drain well al dente. Transfer the pasta to the pan with the pancetta and the tomatoes and sauté it mix well. If necessary, add a little cooking water.

–Add the rocket is jumbled up until the leaves have withered. Complete with pecorino grated and served.

Mascarpone Pound cake with sour cherries

"The Pound Cake (the Four Quarter Cake) is very traditional in American cuisine. I have a little bit "Italianized" and I prepare it with mascarpone and sour cherries with their syrup ".

for 10 people
350 g of butter at room temperature + the one for the mold – 400 g of white flour for desserts – 250 g of amarena pitted in a jar with their syrup – 600 g of caster sugar – 6 large eggs – 225 g of mascarpone – 1 pod of vanilla – 8 g of fine salt

– Turn on the oven at 165 °. Lightly butter one donut mold with the removable bottom of 25 cm in diameter. Engrave the vanilla pod and extract the seeds with a small knife. Drain the cherries, cut them in half and set aside the syrup. In a medium-sized bowl mix the flour with the salt and set aside.

–Cut the butter a pieces and transfer it to a planetary mixer (or mixer) e mounted briefly at medium speed to soften it. Add the sugar, 100 g at a time, and mounted at high speed up to get a light and airy mixture.

–Add the eggs, one by one, mounting after each one. United the seeds of vanilla and fit briefly. Lower the speed to medium and add alternating the mixture of flour and salt and the mascarpone at room temperature, starting and finishing with the flour.

–Add the cherries to the dough and stir. Transfer the dough into the buttered mold and shake it lightly to level it. bake for about 75 minutes, until it is well browned and a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean.

– Meanwhile, you do boil the syrup of cherries in a saucepan for about 5 minutes. Drain and set aside. Take the cake out of the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Sformatela, turn it over on a plate and, while it is still warm, brush the surface and the sides with lo warm syrup. Drain the syrup, transfer the cake to a serving dish and serve.