I've never met anyone who loved to receive guests as much as my mother-in-law, Mara Frassor, or who knew how to host with more ease and savoir-faire than her. This was her go-to post-theater recipe – at the end of the night, she'd invite her friends over and prepare this for everyone. Why she named the pasta as such remains a mystery to this day.
Farfalle alla Frank Sinatra Recipe
Skill Level: Easy
Time: 35 minutes
Vegetarian
Ingredients for 4
12 oz. dry pasta like farfalle (320 g)
⅔ cup fresh cream (160 g)
3 oz. Parmigiano Reggiano DOP (80 g)
8-10 spring onions (green only)
1 sachet of saffron
extra-virgin olive oil
salt and pepper
Finely slice the green part of the spring onions and stew them in a saucepan drizzled with oil, two inches of water, and a pinch of salt for 10-15 minutes over medium heat. The liquid must evaporate and the onions should be withered.
Heat the cream in a pan with saffron, salt, and pepper. After a couple of minutes add the stewed onions and keep warm.
Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente. Set aside a few ladles of cooking water then drain the pasta and add it to the pan with the cream.
Stir in the pasta with the grated Parmesan cheese, adding a little of the cooking water kept aside.
Serve immediately, seasoning to taste with ground pepper.
Recipe by Joëlle Néderlants