Angie Rito & Scott Tacinelli's Orecchiette with Chickpeas & Spinach Recipe

The husband-and-wife chefs and owners of Don Angie restaurant in New York City share a "hearty and filling" meal from their new cookbook Italian American: "It’s extremely easy and quick to make, but the flavor is quite complex—bitter and earthy from the greens and turmeric, and with a creamy finish."

Chefs Angie Rito and Scott Tacinelli share a "hearty and filling" meal from their new cookbook Italian American: "This recipe is inspired by a classic Roman dish called pasta e ceci. There are many variations of pasta e ceci — some with tomatoes, some with leafy greens, some soupy and some more like a thick stew— but the base of the dish is always pasta with chickpeas."

The husband-and-wife chefs and owners of Don Angie restaurant in New York City love the ease of this recipe and say, "It's extremely easy and quick to make, but the flavor is quite complex—bitter and earthy from the greens and turmeric, and with a creamy finish."

Plus, the dish is just as beautiful as it is delicious. "It's impressive to make for guests because they probably haven't seen a pasta dish like it before," Rito and Tacinelli explain. "It's a very bright yellow from the turmeric with a stark contrast from the dark dandelion greens."

Ingredients

Ingredient Checklist

• ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, grated
• 4 cups diced yellow onions (about 2 medium onions)
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or crushed Calabrian chiles in oil
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons ground turmeric
• 2 teaspoons tomato paste
• ½ lb. dandelion greens, Lacinato kale or spinach, stemmed and cut into 1-in. pieces
• 1 (15.5-oz.) can chickpeas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed
• ½ cup heavy cream
• 1 lb. uncooked orecchiette pasta
• 2 oz.s Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated (½ cup)
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice (from 1 lemon)

Directions

Instructions Checklist

• Step 1Heat olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pot over medium. Add garlic; cook, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Add onions, crushed red pepper or Calabrian chiles, sugar, black pepper and 2 teaspoons kosher salt; increase heat to medium high. Cook, stirring often, until onions are softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add turmeric and tomato paste; cook, stirring often, until onions are translucent, another 2 to 3 minutes.
• Step 2Add greens; cook until very soft and tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in chickpeas and heavy cream; cook for 1 minute. Remove from heat.
• Step 3In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package directions, until just cooked through and slightly chewy, about 10 minutes. Drain, and return pasta to the cooking pot. Stir sauce, cheese and lemon juice into pasta to combine. Serve immediately.

Tips

To quickly remove stems from greens: Hold the stem end with one hand and firmly pull back and away along the stem in one smooth motion with the other hand, suggest the chefs.