Family Style Pasta Bar
Servings: the world’s your oyster! Go as big or lil as you’d like, but this tends to work best when you’re feeding several people so you can buy a variety of ingredients.
Guys, I apologize. My crew and I were too busy eating this spread to take any proper photos of it - this may have been the most quickly eaten fam meal I’ve ever made.
Like many of you, we embark on an annual summer sojourn to the beach. And, like us, you probably wonder what to feed the whole damn fam. To accommodate a variety of ages and tastes, we came up with the pasta bar, which is simple, requires minimal prep, and can be prepared in advance - say while everyone is napping.
But, this meal isn’t just good for larger fam gatherings. Apparently everyone likes carbs, butter, and toppings because my daughter’s gen z nanny let me know she’s into my recipes too. So yes folks, I have peaked: I am now advising the youngsters on what’s hip.
Though this isn’t a complicated spread, there is a proper way to prepare pasta, which flummoxes many people. Start by placing a large pot (3 - 4 quarts of water per lb of pasta) on the stove top. Bring the water to boil, add more salt than you think you need (~1 tbsp per lb of pasta), stir in your pasta (tongs work well here), cover your pot, and reduce the heat to medium (boiling pasta yields broken, mushy noodles). Let the pasta simmer (boiling the pasta causes broken, mushy noodles), stirring often to avoid clumps, until cooked according to the instructions on the package/your liking - we prefer ours al dente. Then, drain - but don’t rinse - your pasta, reserving some pasta water for later use and/or reheating.
As always, the components below are merely suggestions - feel free to make this dish your own. Brand recs in the grocery list.
Kid tips
Have the kids drain and plate the mozzarella balls - let them know this is same type of cheese as their beloved string cheese.
Let them prep the veggies by gently tearing the basil leaves, stripping any other herbs you’re using, and snapping the broccolini.
They can brush the butter and sprinkle the cheese onto the garlic bread, if you’re making some.
Pro tips
To reheat your pasta, toss your noods with a few tablespoons of that reserved pasta water and a drizzle of evoo (just call me Rachael Ray). Then, cover and microwave in 30 second blasts til warmed through, or warm over gentle heat on the stove top in a saute pan.
Plays Well With Butter offers more tips on how to properly prepare and store pasta here.
We used cavatatelli (she’s cute yet marture) but use whatever pasta shape your fam prefers! But, don’t use penne, which is trash.
We collect bread: whenever we see a beautiful loaf, we buy it and pop it into the freezer until we have a need for it. In this case, we had a gorgeous foccacia on hand from the Station on Kings.
This whole recipe is really just several recipes in one. You can make the garlic bread, confit tomatoes, or roasted broccolini on their own or together at any time.
Add-ons:
Some nice jarred peppers or pitted olives
We confit’d our tomatoes and you should, too.
Other easy proteins: crisped or air fried boxed calamari, store-bought shrimp cocktail, prosciutto, shredded rotisserie chicken, etc.
Accompaniments:
A salad: say with some crisp baby greens - little gem or butterhead, etc - with cucumber, avocado, and chives, dressed with a little evoo and lemon or Samin Nosrat’s House Dressing.
Garlic bread: always hits and v easy. Melt some butter, grate a few cloves of garlic into it, and season with salt and pepper. Then, brush onto both sides of a halved loaf of bread, dust generously with grated parmesan, and sprinkle with some chopped parsley or chives, if you’d like. Then, pop into a 350° F oven, and bake til crisp and warm, about 7 - 10 minutes. Literally never fails.
Breadcrumbs: again, always slaps. See how to make them here.
Essential Components:
Array of sauces: tomato (we used a lovely, creamy jar of pasta), a jarred pesto, some melted butter with garlic and parmesan, etc.
Pre-made meatballs
Halved cherry tomatoes
Fresh basil leaves
Mozzarella balls
Roasted broccolini
Melted salted butter
Grated and shaved Parmesan
Assembly:
Preheat the oven to 400° F. If you’re confiting your tomatoes, start those now.
Cook your pasta: Start by placing a large pot (3 - 4 quarts of water per pound of pasta) on the stove top and bringing it to boil.
While your water is coming up, prep your broccolini: Grab a baking sheet, then, lob off the tough ends off the broccolini, and break up any large florets. If you want bite sized pieces, cut the stalks in halves or thirds. Then, generously drizzle them with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Pop into the oven and roast until crisp and lightly charred - about 10 - 12 minutes. Alternatively, you can blanch your broccolini in the pasta water after you’ve drained your pasta - just remove the noodles with a spider strainer instead of pouring them in the colander.
Heat your meatballs alongside the broccolini: spread those little guys on a sheet pan and warm until heated through - 7ish minutes. For some extra color, spray with a bit of oil for some extra color.
If you’re also serving garlic bread, pop it into the oven alongside your broccolini.
When your water is boiling add more salt than you think you need (~1 tablespoon per pound of pasta), stir in your pasta (tongs work well here), cover your pot, and reduce the heat to medium and let the pasta simmer (boiling pasta yields broken, mushy noodles). Cook, stirring often to avoid clumps, until the pasta is done your liking/the instructions on the package - we prefer ours al dente. Then, drain - but don’t rinse - your pasta, reserving some pasta water for later use. Toss your noddles with a little olive oil.
While your noodles are cooking, warm your sauce in a pan on the stove top, or in a covered a quart measuring cup (for easy pouring onto pasta!) in the microwave. Can also be served at room temp. Likewise, melt your butter
Finally, prep your veggies: halve your cherry tomatoes through the stem, tear your basil leaves, and spoon your mozzarella balls, Parmesans, and pesto into bowls.
When your noodles are done, and everything is warmed, arrange all your components and serve!