Orecchiette

This easy pasta salad recipe will be the hit of your next potluck.

This super-flavorful dish spins the flavors of shish barak—lamb and pine nut dumplings from the Levant—in a pasta direction.

Turn the iconic cacio e pepe pasta into something a little more kid-friendly by tossing in fresh corn to add a pop of sweetness to every cheesy, peppery bite.

Buttermilk’s tangy brightness cuts through the richness of this glossy sauce. Sugar snap peas, a bunch of mint, and lemon juice keep things fresh.

Cut into small pieces, roasted cauliflower mingles with pasta, bacon, and Parmesan in this hearty, comforting twist on classic carbonara.

Blanch chopped broccoli before cooking your pasta in the same water, then toss the whole thing with crumbled sausage and plenty of chile flakes, butter, and Parmesan.

If you prefer all-pork (or all-veal) meatballs, go ahead and make that change.

Brussels sprouts, pancetta, and pasta were made for each other. The key is to get a good char on the Brussels sprouts, which helps balance the richness of the porky, eggy sauce.

There are two hits of chile in this dish. It's used early on to infuse the oil, where it mellows. The sprinkle added at the end is more "precocious," says Krajeck. "It's not in every bite, but when it hits you, it makes a big impact."

With a bag of frozen kale in your freezer, this elegant dish comes together in less than 30 minutes.

This recipe is part of theEpicurious Online Cooking School, in partnership with the Culinary Institute of America. To watch it being made, and to learn how to make other Italian classics, check out the videos.

Like the classic combination of melon and prosciutto? Then you'll love this main-course pasta salad.

Next time you feel like pasta and a salad for lunch, why not combine the two? I love the way the heat of the pasta warms the greens. I often make this when I’m cooking for one; just adjust all the ingredient quantities accordingly, and start with 6 ounces (about 1 cup) of dried pasta.

Orecchiette, meaning “little ears,” are small dome- shaped disks. They are the most common shape in Puglia. They’re used in many regional dishes there, including the one that inspired our Orecchiette with Fennel Sausage and Swiss Chard (page 180). Although this shape doesn’t look as intricate as some of the others, it is one of the most difficult to shape, which is probably why so few restaurants make their own. Following our instructions, you can’t fail. To get the desired texture on the surface of the pasta, we suggest you use a plastic cutting board. At the Osteria, we use a wooden cutting board that has been deliberately scored with a knife, which gives the orecchiette the texture we want.

Before we opened the Osteria, Matt made all of the dishes he wanted to put on the pasta menu for us to taste together. When he made this dish—his version of a classic from Puglia—I was absolutely convinced that the pasta program we were committing to was a good idea, and that Matt was absolutely the one to execute it. Evidently I’m not alone because this has been our most popular pasta since the day we opened. The chard you will prepare for this dish makes more than you will need for four servings, as does the Fennel Sausage recipe. It would be a good recipe to double and serve to a crowd—just remember to prepare the sauce and toss it with the pasta in two separate sauté pans.

Broccoli, a cruciferous vegetable, contains significant amounts of vitamins A and C, as well as calcium, iron, and riboflavin.

Orecchiette—little ears—are a pasta made from grano duro, or semolina, and served often with a rough sauce of cima di rape, the bitter leaves of a variety of Italian turnip not always available in America. Do not mistake them for young broccoli, as some do. Should the real thing not be at hand, it is a better business to substitute dandelion or beet or turnip greens or red chard or even to make the sauce only with cauliflower, especially the grassy-green, purply-edged Roman variety.