Maitò Penne: The Recipe that Had Vips like Sophia Loren and De Niro Fall in Love

Maitò Penne is a first course of pasta that is not very well known currently, but that in the past literally drove VIPs and big names of the entertainment world crazy, from Sophia Loren to Robert De Niro. A recipe created in Versilia, in 1965, by Bruno Vietina, now a retired chef who, however, has several restaurants in the United Stated: to enjoy this creamy dish Fred Buongusto, Sophia Loren and Carlo Ponti, Ray Charles, the Agnelli family, Moratti, Mina, De Niro and Al Pacino stopped filming or stopped their activities as soon as they could and ran to the Tuscan restaurant.

But what is the secret of this recipe? The secret of the success of this dish born in Forte Dei Marmi, in the restaurant that has the recipe's same name, Maitò, lies precisely in its seasoning: the delicious tomato sauce enriched with Normandy butter and basil. A dish that has now become iconic in the entire area, thanks to the restaurant that first proposed it: "Maitò", according to some versions of the story, would have been the nickname of the restaurant owners' grandmother. Here's how to prepare Maitò penne to perfection.

How to Prepare Maitò Penne

Very few ingredients but a unique taste: Maitò penne is a very simple first course to prepare. Normandy butter is not very easy to find, but you can replace it with a high quality Italian butter, preferably from a mountain pasture. If possible the Parmesan should be lightly seasoned and, for an impeccable result, the central part of the wheel should be used.

Ingredients for 4 people

• 320 grams of smooth penne
• 3 peeled tomatoes or 500ml of tomato puree
• 150 grams of very cold Normandy butter
• 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• fresh basil
• Parmiggiano Reggiano
• Salt
• black pepper

Preparation

In a large pan with high sides, heat a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil and add a couple of basil leaves. Add the tomatoes (or puree if you prefer) and let them cook, adding salt to your taste, for about twenty minutes. At this point you can decide wether to put the butter directly in the tomato, mixing it over a low heat, or wether to add it during the creaming phase. In any case, the sauce should not be excessively thick, but a little long.

Cook the penne very "al dente", drain them, keeping half a glass of the cooking water aside and place them directly in the pan with the sauce (add the butter now if you haven't done so before). Add the Parmesan, a few more basil leaves and continue to cook the pasta for a few minutes, up to 3 or 4 minutes, until the sauce thickens around the penne. If necessary, add cooking water. At the end, add just a sprinkling of freshly ground black pepper and serve, bringing the whole pan to the table, as per the Maitò tradition.