Scott Conant - The Scarpetta Cookbook

Copyright 2013 by Scott Conant. All rights reserved.

Photography Copyright 2013 by Brent Herrig

Cover image by Melanie Dunea

Prop styling by Kira Corbin

Design by Vertigo Design NYC

Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, New York, New York

Published simultaneously in Canada.

For information about permission to reproduce selections from this book, write to Permissions, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 215 Park Avenue South, New York, New York 10003.

www.hmhco.com

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:

Conant, Scott.

The Scarpetta cookbook / Scott Conant; photography by Brent Herrig.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-118-50870-1 (cloth); 978-0-544-18805-1 (ebk)

1. Cooking, Italian. I. Herrig, Brent. II. Scarpetta (Restaurant: New York, NY) III. Title.

TX723.C61728 2013

641.5945dc23

2013005874

v1.1013

DAD

Your job is to make your life better for your family, than I did for mine.
I can still hear those words ringing in my ears. I hope I have made you proud.

I love you, Pop.

FOR AYLA AND KARYA

I will always fight to succeed for you both.

T HERE ARE SO MANY PEOPLE TO THANK FOR MAKING THIS BOOK A REALITY, AND SIMPLY TOO MANY TO NAME, BUT HERE GOES ANYWAY:

My wife, Meltem, for all the love, care and sacrifice she demonstrates on a daily basis so that I can pursue my dreams and passions. I dont tell you often enough just how lucky I am to have you. You are the reason why I can do what I do. I love you!

My core team at SCM: Nick Kennedy, Irene Chiang, Chris Cuomo, and Jorge Espinosa. You are the backbone; I thank you all deeply.

The rest of the players:

Nina Compton

Jennifer Fassett

Ben Kaplan

Todd Sugimoto

Gina Marinelli

Ryan Morrison

Gaetano Ferrara

Chris Wyman

Mike Pirolo

Freddy Vargas

Yssac Vargas

Alex Stratta

Yolanda Guererro

Jeremy Sung

Darron Lee

Joanna Zoldak

Nataly Herrera

Mario Di Si

Noe Alarcon

Kelli Binette

Marc Davis

Paolo Barbieri

The team at every one of my restaurants as well as the hotel partners in every property.

The team at WME: Josh Bider, Ken Slotnick, Bethany Dick, Jon Rosen, and Eric Lupfer.

All the judges I get to spend time with, great people and great friends: Geoffrey, Amanda, Alex, Aaron, Marc, Marcus, Maneet, Ted, and Chris.

The books photographer, Brent Herrig, and prop stylist, Kira Corbinwithout them this would not have been possible. Also Melanie Dunea for the cover photograph.

The ladies at Becca PR.

My editor, Justin Schwartz.

And, of course, Joanne Smart; as usual, she has captured the essence of my vision for this book. Thank you and your family!

M Y LOVE OF COOKING, AND ESPECIALLY OF I TALIAN CUISINE, BEGAN AT AN EARLY AGE. G ROWING UP IN AN I TALIAN- A MERICAN FAMILY (MY GRANDPARENTS WERE FROM I TALY), I ENJOYED A LOT OF GOOD FOOD, AS EARLY PHOTOS OF ME AS A CHUBBY LITTLE KID CAN ATTEST. I ALWAYS FELT COMFORTABLE IN THE KITCHEN WITH MY GRANDMOTHER AND MY AUNTS, WHO DID THE BULK OF THE COOKING FOR MY EXTENDED FAMILY.

I first started cooking in a serious way when I was 15 and going to a vocational school. I wanted to be a plumberI knew there was good money to be had therebut I couldnt get into the program. My second choice was culinary arts because it was the only thing other than gym that I ever got an A in. Around the same time, I started working at a family friends restaurant as a dishwasher, just to make some money. I had always played a lot of sports, and what I loved about the kitchen was that same camaraderie I found as part of the baseball team: everyone doing their own thing but working together for the same ultimate goal.

After high school, I went to the Culinary Institute of America. In 1995, Cesare Casella asked me to be chef de cuisine at Il Toscanaccio, his Tuscan restaurant on New Yorks Upper East Side. A year later, I went on to revamp Barolo in SoHo and Chianti on the Upper East Side. When the chance arose to help open a new restaurant, I accepted the position of executive chef at City Eatery, where my modern take on Italian cuisine started getting some serious attention.

In 2001, I was approached about opening a restaurant in Tudor City. In preparation for what was to become LImpero, I traveled all around Italy and cooked with some of the countrys most celebrated chefs. (I also got the chance to reconnect with my mothers relatives in Benevento, which was just amazing.) LImpero, which opened in September 2002, received a rave three-star review from the New York Times. A few years later, ready to strike out on my own, I left LImpero as well as Alto, my upscale interpretation of northern Italian cuisine, to create Scarpetta.

If there is something that prompts a chef to truly define and refine his style, its opening his own restaurant. Before Scarpetta, I had been involved in other restaurant openings as a chef and a partner, and I always made the decisions about the food and whom to hire. But Scarpetta was completely different. This was all on me. Every single decision, from the food to what kind of napkins would be on the table to which font to use for the menu to which florist we should hire to arrange the flowers, was ultimately mine to make. And the sheer number of decisions that come into play when opening a restaurant is truly staggering. The only thing that kept me going at times was the desire to express my own vision.

The name of the restaurant says it all. Fare la scarpetta, to make a little shoe, is an Italian phrase that refers to the act of tearing off a chunk of bread and using it to mop up any sauce thats left on the plate. And the intention of Scarpetta from day one has been to reflect that. Our logo incorporates the swipe thats left on the plate after you have dragged that bit of bread across it. Its an ever-present reminder of our whole corporate philosophy: not only to make food that people want to eat every last bit of, but also to create an environment that puts them at ease to do so. Yet this is not a casual dining experience, so it makes for an interesting and exciting balance thats exhibited in every facet of the Scarpetta experience.

The physical characteristics of the original Scarpetta in New Yorkelegant orchids rising above distressed wood paneling made from reclaimed flooring and white all-cotton napkins set on sleek, dark tablestelegraph that balance of style and comfort. Our waitstaff does, too. They may be stylishly dressed and impeccably mannered, but theyre also friendly, approachable, and passionate about what they do. Then theres the food: simple dishes prepared with deliberation, classic techniques given an inventive edge, flavors that are sophisticated yet soulful. Take my spaghetti, which has become a signature recipe. On the menu, its described with just a few words: tomato & basil. And thats pretty much all it is. Except the spaghetti is handmade. The tomatoes are carefully selected Romas cooked just until their flavor has become rounded and lovely. And the method, which you can read about in , is simple yet deliberate, from the slicing of the basil to a finish of an infused olive oil before serving. Im sure that most of our customers have no idea that so much care and attention goes into creating what ultimately looks simple on the plate. All they know is that the spaghetti makes them very happy.