Orecchiette

This is a quick and easy main dish. Although most shrimp you buy have been frozen, this dish is absolutely superb made with fresh shrimp, the largest you can find.

A technique I have always liked, when preparing vegetables for a pasta dish, is to toss them in the pot with the pasta as it boils. Depending on which takes longer, I put the vegetable in first and then add the pasta, or vice versa. Either way, I believe this maximizes the flavor and nutritional value of the vegetables, and I know the pasta absorbs some of the vegetable flavor as they cook in the same water. I was glad to see this technique used frequently in preparing pasta dishes in Calabria, like this one, where orecchiette and arugula are cooked in the pot together before they are tossed with the other dressing vegetables, favas, and cherry tomatoes. Great to make in spring when fresh favas are in the market.

Radishes and breadcrumbs give this greens-packed vegetarian pasta its crunchy texture.

Look di-vine! Red grapes contain antioxidants that combat inflammation, a main acne culprit.

The croutons found their way into this dish thanks to the frugality of Italian cooks. "Puglians don't throw anything out," says Donatella. "Any leftover bread is used in the pasta."

Garlic chives add a mildly garlicky flavor to this simple pasta, which is loaded with little tomatoes and tiny pearls of fresh mozzarella cheese. The pea-size mozzarella can be found at Trader Joe's and well-stocked supermarkets.

One 16-ounce container of ricotta is enough for this recipe and leftovers.

This recipe was shared with Epicurious by Chef Joseph W. DiPerri of The Culinary Institute of America.

Incorporating tender slow-roasted pork into a sugo (sauce) brings out its fullest potential.

In this quick version of a common Puglian dish, pungent garlic and spicy red-pepper flakes turn frozen broccoli into a perfect partner for ear-shaped pasta.

Ripe juices from plump late-summer tomatoes permeate this quick, flavorful pasta—and make you wish it could be August all year long.

You can barely take a step in Puglia without encountering homemade orecchiette, which have an unusual hybrid flavor somewhere between dried and fresh pasta (they're made from semolina and contain no eggs). They happen to be the ideal shape to pair with chickpeas, since many orecchiette will naturally cradle a pea along with the perfect amount of sauce. Though homemade pasta is intensely gratifying (and delicious), this sauce also goes very well with fine-quality store-bought orecchiette (see cooks' note, below).

Eggs become a silky, creamy sauce when they're tossed with hot pasta. Here, leeks add a nice spring touch to the traditional Roman dish.

As you may know, orecchiette is Italian for "little ears." Their size and rounded shape are just right for holding chunky toppings—pancetta, pine nuts, and broccoli fit that bill nicely. Grating Parmigiano-Reggiano over the entire dish is always a good idea.

Cheese power: Monterey Jack and parmesan are creamy and smooth, while blue lends a subtle savoriness.

Orecchiette con Ragù di Coniglio Think of orecchiette as the fingerprinting device of the culinary world. Each "little ear" of pasta is formed by the cook's thumb pressing into a small disk of dough. In Puglia, orecchiette is the signature pasta, and, with a ragù made from rabbit or its wild cousin the hare, whose meat is darker, it's comfort food, Italian-style.

It is important to cut the broccoli flowerets into pieces small enough to fit into the hollow of the orecchiette.

Ann Gillespie of Alexandria, Virginia, writes: "Because I'm balancing graduate school and a family, I try to cook things that don't take a lot of time. But I love experimenting with ingredients, so most of my recipes are easy to make and use interesting flavor combinations. This pasta dish is reminiscent of what my husband and I would cook when we were first married."

Italy meets Greece in a dish that pairs well with grilled lamb or chicken. What to drink: A crisp Pinot Grigio or Grüner Veltliner.