Everything happens in one pot: the cime di rapa go into the pasta water three minutes after the orecchiette, so the greens season the pasta and the water softens their bitterness. Then anchovy melted into oil with garlic and chile, and toasted breadcrumbs instead of cheese, which add crunch without dulling the greens.
Make ahead Shape the pasta in advance and keep it on a semolina-dusted tray while you prepare the greens. Cook and dress it just before serving.
Orecchiette alle Cime di Rapa
Prep 50 min · Cook 20 min · Rest 20 min · Serves 4 · Difficulty Medium
Method
Knead the semola with about 200 ml warm water and a pinch of salt into a firm dough; rest 20 minutes.
30 min
Roll thin ropes, cut hazelnut pieces, and drag each with a table knife across the board so it curls; invert over your thumb into a little ear. Park on semolina.
40 min
Strip the cime di rapa to florets and tender leaves; wash twice.
12 min
Toast the breadcrumbs golden in a spoonful of the oil; set aside. In the same wide pan, melt the anchovies into the remaining oil with garlic and chile over low heat.
6 min
Boil the orecchiette in well-salted water; after 3 minutes add the greens to the same pot and cook until pasta and stems are both tender, 4 to 5 minutes more.
9 min
Lift pasta and greens into the anchovy pan with a ladle of the green water and toss over lively heat until glossy and married.
2 min
Plate and crown with the toasted crumbs. Cheese stays in the cupboard; this is the breadcrumb’s night.
Kitchen notes
One pot is the recipe. Boiling greens and pasta together is not a shortcut, it is the flavor system: the water seasons the pasta and tames the bitterness in one move.
Drag with intent. The knife-drag gives each ear a rough face that grips the oil. Smooth, machine-perfect orecchiette slip; ugly ones eat better.
No cime di rapa in your latitude? Broccolini with a handful of arugula boiled in approximates the bitterness honorably for the exile months.
Cacioricotta has its fans. This version uses toasted breadcrumbs rather than cheese. Add them at the table so they stay crisp.
