Ingredients

serves 6 as a main course, 8 or more as a first course

　　1 pound chicken livers

　　6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

　　3 tablespoons butter

　　1 medium onion, finely chopped (1 1/4 cups)

　　2 bay leaves

　　1 teaspoon coarse sea salt or kosher salt, or to taste, plus more for the pasta water

　　3 cups hot stock (Poultry Broth, page 8, or chicken, turkey, or vegetable stock)

　　1 tablespoon tomato paste

　　1 cup frozen peas

　　Freshly ground black pepper to taste

　　1 recipe (2 pounds) fresh bigoli, page 105

　　1/3 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley

　　1 1/2 cups freshly grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano-Reggiano

　　

Recommended Equipment

A heavy-bottomed skillet or sauté pan, 14-inch diameter or larger

　　A large pot, 10-quart capacity, to cook the bigoli

　　

Recommended Equipment

A food processor fitted with steel blade for mixing the dough

　　A genuine torchio hand press (see Sources, page 340), or a home pasta-extruder (standalone machine or electric-mixer attachment) or meat grinder (machine or mixer attachment)

　　

Step 1

Clean the chicken livers, removing all the fat, veins, and membranes. Chop them into small bits with a chef’s knife.

　　

Step 2

Heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil and all the butter in the large skillet over medium heat. Stir in the onion and the bay leaves, and season with 1/4 teaspoon salt. When the onion is wilted and translucent, stir in the chopped chicken livers, and salt again lightly.

　　

Step 3

Pour in 1/4 cup hot stock, raise the heat, and cook, stirring, until the moisture is nearly evaporated. Clear a space in the skillet, drop in the tomato paste, toast it in the hot spot for a minute, then stir the paste in with the chopped livers and onion. Scatter the frozen peas into the skillet, stir, then pour in the remaining stock.

　　

Step 4

Bring the liquid to a boil, and adjust the heat to keep it bubbling steadily. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and generous grinds of black pepper. Let the sauce cook and reduce, stirring occasionally, until most of the moisture is gone and it has a thick, flowing consistency, 10 minutes or so. Adjust the seasonings, and have the sauce simmering when the pasta is dressed.

　　

Step 5

Meanwhile, fill the large pot with 8 quarts of water, add 2 tablespoons salt, cover, and heat to a rolling boil. Shake excess flour off the bigoli, drop into the pot, and return rapidly to the boil. Cook, occasionally stirring, until the pasta is nearly al dente (time will vary with the thickness of the strands). Lift bigoli from the water with a spider, drain briefly, and turn it into the simmering sauce. Toss together until the pasta is fully cooked and dressed with sauce.

　　

Step 6

Turn off the heat, toss in the parsley, the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil, and a cup of the grated cheese. Serve immediately, passing more cheese at the table.

　　From Lidia's Italy by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich. Copyright (c) 2007 by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich. Published by Knopf.Lidia Bastianich hosts the hugely popular PBS show, "Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen" and owns restaurants in New York City, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh. Also the author of Lidia's Italian Table and Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, she lives in Douglaston, New York.