Tortellini with Sage Brown Butter

(from Mario Batali)

Mario Batali, you officially have a new fan. I mean, I have been dying to go to Eataly. Other than that, I wasn't entirely sold (this opinion was clearly based on zero evidence). But then there was the papalina recipe. And now, this. And now, I'm completely won over. I want to go buy all the cookbooks you've ever written, Batali.

I've always wanted to make a sage brown butter sauce. I've tried. But something wasn't right - the recipe sounded way too heavy on the butter (it is butter sauce, I suppose), or I burned the butter, or there wasn't enough sauce. But I did a quick Google search tonight, Batali's was the first one, and what I saw finally looked right.

The secret ingredient was lemon juice. Something to cut the butter. Something to give it a little zip and make it into a real sauce. The addition of parmesan didn't hurt, either.

This is so, so easy. And so, so good. Just...satisfying. Subtle yet powerful at the same time. And for a butter sauce, it doesn't feel overly buttery or heavy, either. It takes as long to make as it takes to cook pasta. Are you sold yet?

8 oz dried tortellini
2 tbsp butter
4 sage leaves
Juice from about 1/4-1/3 of a lemon
1/4 or so grated parmesan (I used a tad less)

While the pasta cooks, melt the butter in a saute pan, and cook over medium heat until the thinnest liquid of the butter starts to get golden brown. Add the sage leaves and remove from heat, then squeeze the lemon juice directly into the pan. Set aside.

Drain your pasta, reserving just a bit (less than a 1/4 cup) of pasta water. Pour pasta into the saute pan with a little pasta water and return to heat. Toss to coat, add the cheese, and toss to coat again. Heaven!

Braised Pork Chops with Sage and Tomatoes

(adapted from Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking)

Marcella. Let me explain. As I've said many a time before, everything my parents cook is phenomenal. I've rarely seen them use cookbooks. But when they did, it was Marcella. Frequently when I'd come home from school and ask my dad what he was making for dinner, all he'd have to say was, "Marcella!" - and we were pretty much guaranteed a knock-out meal. I think the name of her cookbook really sums it up - Marcella Hazan is the essential classic Italian cook, at least in my book. I have honestly been pining for her cookbook. So when my dad offered an extra copy he had on hand, I snatched it up.

This book seriously has everything. And I want to make it all. I started with these pork chops, and was not disappointed.

1 tbsp butter
1/2 tbsp vegetable oil
2 pork loin chops (pat dry)
Flour spread on a plate
3-4 fresh sage leaves
Salt
Ground black pepper
3/4 cup canned Italian plum tomatoes, cut up with their juice

In a large rimmed saute pan, heat the butter and oil over medium-high. When the foam from the butter starts to subside, dust each chop with flour on both sides, shaking off the excess, and slip them into the pan with the sage. Brown the chops on each side (1-2 minutes per side).

Add salt and some pepper along with the tomatoes and their juice. Turn the heat to low and cover the plan with the lid slightly ajar. Cook for about 20 minutes (up to 60, per Marcella, but we didn't have the patience), turning occasionally, until the meat is cooked and tender. Done!