Cocoa Tagliatelle at LaRina Pastificio & Vino in Brooklyn

Lauren Glassberg Image
Friday, November 18, 2016
Neighborhood Eats: Cocoa tagliatelle at LaRina Pastificio & Vino in Brooklyn
Lauren Glassberg shares some enticing recipes.

FORT GREENE, Brooklyn (WABC) -- You'll get all the comforts of home with pasta galore at a pasta shop in Brooklyn in this week's Neighborhood Eats.

LaRina Pastificio & Vino is located at 387 Myrtle Avenue in the Fort Greene section of Brooklyn.

"We come from Italy where you do eat pasta every single day and you don't feel guilty, it's a comfort food, it's a comfort food," said Giulia Pelliccioni, co-owner of LaRina Pastificio & Vino.

Piping hot, fresh pasta is comforting all right.

It's the mainstay of the menu at LaRina Pastificio & Vino. Pastificio, by the way, means pasta shop, which the restaurant has in the back.

Pastas are made every day for sale along with whatever you need for the sauce.

Pelliccioni runs the front of the house and her co-owner Silvia Barban, who only moved to the states from Italy four years ago, is the chef.

"It's very satisfying. I came for a dream, everything is happening," Barban said.

LaRina is three months into its run in Fort Greene where both owners live and it's already buzzing.

You can try a starter of burratta and olives and peanuts or a heartier dish called Bollito misto with beef, lamb, pork and root vegetables.

Then of course the pasta, carbonara or spaghetti with garlic and oil, both made with spaghetti that's actually smoked.

"Because in America people love BBQ, I smoke my spaghetti with hickory wood," Barban said.

Their tagliatelle is made with cocoa. Because it's made fresh it cooks in two minutes.

Barban sautes porcinis with garlic and oil and adds the pasta and mixes in a walnut pesto.

But with so many pasta options, even gluten free, there's something for everyone and this Italian neighborhood spot.

Cocoa Tagliatelle Recipe

Chef Silvia Barban
LaRina Pastificio & Vino

Makes 1 serving

To make 4oz Pasta:

1 cup pasta flour (Spadoni if available), plus addition to flour work surface

2 teaspoon cocoa powder

1 whole egg

1 teaspoon olive oil

water (if necessary)

Mix the flour and cocoa powder into a mound, and using your fingrs, create a crater in the center. Add the egg and olive oil into the crater and beat with a fork. Incorporate the egg-oil into the flour, and if the dough seems too dry, add a touch of water. Let dough rest for 15 minutes. Dust the work surface with extra flour, and roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it is -inch thick. Fold the dough into a loose 10-inch-long roll and cut it 1-inch wide strips. When all the strips have been cut, unroll each strip to form the tagliatelle.

For the Walnut Pesto:

1 ounce toasted walnuts

1 ounce Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1 ounce pecorino

2 tablespoons vegetable stock

1.5oz extra-virgin olive oil

Preheat an oven to 300F. In a medium-size baking dish, toast the walnuts for 5 minutes. Add the walnuts to a food processor and blend the cheeses and stock. While the food processor is blending, slowly drizzle in the olive oil.

For the Porcini:

2 ounces fresh porcini

1 clove garlic, peeled and chopped

2 tablespoons olive oil

Parsley leaves, to garnish

Cut the porcini in half or quarters depending on the size of the mushrooms. Sauté the mushrooms in a hot pan with garlic, olive oil and parsley.

To serve:

Salt, to season water

1/2 teaspoon butter

1 cup vegetable stock

3 chives, chopped

In a large stock pot filled with boiling water, cook the pasta for 2 minutes. In a sauté pan set over medium heat, add the butter and let it slowly brown. Add the porcini and 1 cup vegetable stock. Drain the pasta and add to the pan with the porcini and cook for 1 minute. At the end, add the pesto and stir until well mixed. Top with chopped chives.