Christopher Columbus Wrong Way Pasta

As a descendant of Italian immigrants, I’m grateful for and proud of my heritage, and for our government’s recognition of Italian Americans by establishing Columbus Day. On Monday, I plan to cook up something Italian, and pair the dish with vino from the country that has been called: “a boot full of wine.”

Alas, what has been celebrated as Columbus Day since 1792 is now officially known as Indigenous Peoples Day. With all due respect to the folks who existed in North America before Christopher Columbus was credited with discovering our continent, I’m still observing the former holiday.

To be perfectly honest, Columbus was directionally challenged. He left Italy on a trade mission to the orient, but he sailed west instead of east, and ended up discovering North…. AMERICA. But I’m thankful for his navigational mistake. In honor of that fortuitous error, I’m providing you with a recipe for a special cavatappi pasta casserole, and recommending two wines that pair seamlessly with the dish.

And since cavatappi is shaped like a corkscrew, I could think of no more appropriate pasta type than one which is screwy – kind of like Christopher Columbus. 

Columbus Wrong Way Pasta

Ingredients:
One pound of cavatappi
One pound of Italian sausage links
Eight ounces of shredded mozzarella cheese
Four tablespoons of freshly grated parmesan cheese
One half cup each red, green and yellow bell peppers chopped
One small onion chopped, and three garlic cloves minced
Three ounces of olive oil
One-quarter chopped fresh basil, and one ounce hot pepper flakes (optional)
One tablespoon freshly ground black peppercorns, and salt to taste
Two 28-ounce cans of whole tomatoes – preferably San Marzano
One small can of tomato paste
One pint of water

Preparation:
Boil cavatappi in a large pot until al dente, drain and allow to cool
Fry or microwave sausage links, and chop roughly
Saute’ onions, peppers and garlic in olive oil in a large pot
Open cans of whole tomatoes, and crush them by hand into the pot
Stir tomato paste into pot and add the water
Add sausage to the mixture along with salt, pepper, hot pepper and basil
Cook the sauce for one to two hours until it thickens.
Cover bottom of a casserole dish with cavatappi
Mix in sauce and cover with a portion of mozzarella and sprinkle parmesan
Add layers of sauce and cheese until casserole is full
Top casserole with mozzarella, cover with foil and bake @ 350 degrees for one hour
Allow to rest for 20 minutes, cut in squares and serve

My wine selection for the recipe is Chianti which is made in Tuscany. The Italian government requires that Chianti must contain no less than 70 percent sangiovese grapes. Chianti Classico must be comprised of 80 percent sangiovese and be aged for 12 months, while Chianti Classico Riserva must be aged in barrels for at least 24 months before it can be bottled. Here are the two wines I recommend for Columbus Wrong Way Pasta.

2021 Frescobaldi Nipozzano Chianti Rufina Riserva ($22) With intense notes of black cherry and blueberries, this wine is medium-bodied with chewy tannins and perfectly balanced acidity. It is a subtle, but delicious accompaniment to this robust pasta dish.

2021 Villa Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva ($30) Aromas of tobacco and toasty oak lead to flavors of ripe red currants with a finishing note of red cherries. A fuller flavored Chianti than the Frescobaldi, this wine stands up to and enhances this bold and spicy cavatappi recipe.

John Brown is also a novelist. His two books – Augie’s War and Augie’s World – are available online and in bookstores around the state. The third book in the Augie Trilogy- Augie’s Wine – will be released later this year. You can find out more about his novels, and review all of his archived Vines & Vittles columns at wordsbyjohnbrown.com