This week in The Blue and Yellow Kitchen I talked to Ariel Henley about her memoir, A Face for Picasso (affiliate link). Ariel and her identical twin sister Zan were born with Crouzon Syndrome, a rare condition where the bones of the head fuse prematurely. They were the first twins known to survive it, and they endured many painful surgeries—from ages 8 months to their teens—as doctors re-arranged bones to make room for organs and reshaped their faces toward US standards of beauty.
While marketed as a Young Adult memoir, this coming-of-age story is important reading for people of any age. Pre-teens and teens will find so much to relate to in Ariel’s story about longing to fit in, be seen as attractive, and be popular. Mature readers will appreciate the deft way Henley weaves in the story of the painter Picasso, his art, and his abusive relationships with women as a metaphor for her own relationship with toxic beauty standards and body dysmorphia.
We chose spaghetti with marinara sauce for the show as it was one of the only foods Ariel could comfortably eat after recovering from some of these painful facial surgeries. Watch her episode below.
The sauce recipe is courtesy of Liz Dolan of The Satellite Sisters podcast. For the show I served it over capellini (for the quick cooking time), garnished with fresh basil and oregano and grated Parmesan.
Mama Capra's marinara sauce with meatballs and capellini
Ingredients
Mama Capra's marinara sauce
- 1/3 cup olive oil (extra virgin)
- 10 cloves garlic minced (add less if you don't want it super garlicky)
- 56 ounces tomatoes Italian plum, no salt added
- 1/2 cup vodka or dry Marsala wine
- 1 bunch basil leaves (fresh) chopped
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar (organic)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt omit for lowest-sodium version
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes add more if you want it spicy
Meatballs
- 2 pieces bread (gluten-free) toasted
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 pound beef (grass-fed, ground) grass-fed, or ground turkey if you prefer
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning salt-free, OR 1 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder Penzey's roasted garlic powder if you have it
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt omit for lowest-sodium version
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
Mama Capra's marinara sauce
- Heat large pot over medium-high heat. Add olive oil. As soon as it's shimmering, add garlic and stir for 30-60 seconds.
- Immediately add tomatoes and remaining sauce ingredients (vodka through red pepper flakes). Stir well. Bring just to a boil, then turn down to a simmer and partially cover. Cook for 60 minutes.
- While the sauce is cooking, assemble the meatballs (below).
- After 60 minutes, use a potato masher (or immersion blender) to break up the tomatoes.
- Add the meatballs to the simmering sauce (I use an ice cream scooper to drop them directly in). Simmer 30 more minutes.
- Bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the pasta according to package directions, timing it so it will be done the same time as the sauce.
- Drain the pasta and rinse briefly with cold water. Drizzle with a little olive oil, shaking the colander to drain the water and stirring to coat the strands.
- Serve pasta in bowls topped with sauce and meatballs, adding grated Parmesan or Romano cheese if you like.
Meatballs
- Break up toasted bread and whiz in food processor to make bread crumbs. Place in a large bowl. Add garlic to food processor, finely mince, then add to bowl.
- Add meat, eggs, and spices to bowl and mix together with your hands until evenly mixed.
- Form meatballs by hand or using an ice cream scooper, then drop into simmering sauce as indicated above.
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