"Pasta Diva": Pasta alla Norma

Casta Diva, che inargenti
queste sacre antiche piante,
a noi volgi il bel sembiante
senza nube e senza vel...
Tempra, o Diva,
tempra tu de’ cori ardenti
tempra ancora lo zelo audace,
spargi in terra quella pace
che regnar tu fai nel ciel...


Ah, my OQ friends will recognize those lyrics won't you? The opening lines for the title character in the opera "Norma." A moment that we all wait for, with the range set high, and difficult. Waiting for the diva herself to sing

And so often we are disappointed. And we return to the recordings of Callas (Annalena's favorite), or Sutherland, or whomever (OQs, please chime in: who is your favorite Norma? No, Gattopardo, you may NOT answer "my favorite Norma is Rae.") The character is so hard to pull off, so difficult, and the role so taxing.

And ultimately it has nothing to do with the recipe at hand: pasta alla Norma, except maybe it does. The story goes that the pasta was around before the opera was; however, when the composer, Vincenzo Bellini, was served it, he said "this pasta is a Norma. It is perfect." And so it is now called, "pasta alla Norma."

I want to believe that this is how it got its name. And I want every performance of the opera to be as perfect as the recordings of Maria Callas singing the aria are. (Go to youtube and find one, per favore). It is inspiring, when I make this dish which is truly a marker of summer. Just as a mezzo should not attempt the role (and too many have), one should not make this with winter produce. Remember it is a Sicilian dish in origin, think of Sicily geographically, and then proceed.

As with many canonical dishes, you will have various "rules" about this dish. Some will say the eggplant MUST be fried. Others will roast it. Some will say it MUST be done with maccheroni. Others insist on strozzapreti. And so on, and so forth. I shall offer you my version, but of course, if the combination of ingredients intrigue you, please venture forth and make some variations. Here we go.

You need a pound of eggplant. Look for the smaller ones. I used four, small ones, that were light purple. When eggplant are small, the skin has not toughened yet, and you do not have to peel them. That is a consideration in this dish, because you want color. I cut the eggplant lengthwise, and then cube them about an inch long. I salt these with about a teaspoon and a half of salt, because I want the eggplant to be firmer and, I find, that salting them reduced their ability to soak up oil like a sponge.

You will also need a pound and a half or so of tomatoes. As with the eggplant, if they are ripe and savory, you will not need to peel them. If you can, use red and yellow ones. Simply core out that green thing in the center, and then cut them into pieces about the size of the eggplant. I do not bother seeding them either, but if you feel so inclined, do not let Annalena stop you.

When you are ready to cook, take the eggplant in handfuls, and squeeze out as much of the water as you can. Put the squeezed eggplant in a separate bowl, and get a good quantity of olive oil hot, in a big pan. Three tablespoons is the minimum I would use, but four is probably better. If you use a measuring cup, that's a quarter cup. When it's hot, add the eggplant, and LEAVE IT ALONE for about three minutes. This lets the stuff get some color. Then, turn it, so that it cooks through thoroughly. After about another three minutes, add the tomatoes, and cook, over medium heat, until the tomatoes begin to collapse and you have a "saucy" pan of vegetables.

While this is happening, bring a big pot of water to a boil, salt it, and cook a pound of pasta. The smaller shapes are better here. As mentioned above ,maccheroni and strozzapretti are traditional. I used a pound of orecchiete made with "burned flour", an ingredient I had not seen before, and it was delicious. Use what you are comfortable with, and cook the stuff to al dente.

While it is cooking, let's turn to the issue of the cheese. The traditional version calls for ricotta salata, and it is truly delicious with such. If you do not have ricotta salata, as was my case, use feta, or some other firm, dry, salted cheese. Tradition says that you grate the cheese. I like it better by breaking it into cubes of different sizes: some very small, almost particulate, others larger. I stir the cheese into the warm sauce, off the heat , and when the pasta is done, stir it in. The heat of the pasta melts some of the cheese, but not all of it, and brings the sauce to the correct temperature. I use 3/4 pound of cheese for the other ingredients

Again, going to tradition, you now add a cup of torn, fresh basil leaves. I have seen this with mint leaves (basis IS a mint, you know), but I like it without the herbs. As with the other steps, proceed as you like.

And you are done. If this sounds like an extravagant dish, think again. Go look back at the ingredient list, think of a farmer's family, making a special dish, and...

See what I mean?

Annalena would like to dedicate this one to her beloved Italian teacher, in Italy, who should cook this immediately and think of her.

Baci, caro.