Jodi Applegate and Ron Corning, co-hosts of Fox's Good Day New York, both claim to be serious foodies, and it was a toss-up as to which one would have the chance to share their favorite recipe with Gothamist. But New York Magazine went through Ron Corning's daily diet last month, and Jodi Applegate wanted to unveil her favorite recipe for Tuna Surprise here today.
Because both anchors have to get up early in the morning for the show, they keep odd hours and have trouble meeting up with other friends to go out for late dinners. Jodi makes up for that by cooking dinner with her husband (well, she cooks, and he does the dishes) at around 5 pm before going to sleep at night.
The tuna surprise recipe came from an old boyfriend of Jodi's - it was the only thing he knew how to cook. She thought the dish was laughable back then, but now she swears by it and likes making variants of it to use up whatever she has lying around in her kitchen. Here is the bare bones recipe she shared with us:
Tuna Surprise
Pasta (fettuccine or spaghetti, but really anything, including whole wheat or spinach pasta)
Fresh garlic, finely chopped
Olive oil
Anchovy paste
A can of tuna in oil
Butter
Clam juice
Fresh parsley, chopped
Freshly ground pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
The proportions are really to taste. The recipe is elastic, and Jodi tends to throw in whatever vegetables she has in her fridge (such as finely chopped carrots, browned onions, fresh tomatoes, or spinach or broccoli rabe instead of the parsley).
Cook your pasta al dente in salted boiling water. Drain and set aside.
Heat the olive oil in a large pan, then saute the garlic over medium-high heat until it begins to get translucent. Stir in a few squirts of anchovy paste mush it together, then dump in the tuna. Add some butter and clam juice to enrich the sauce and simmer a bit until it all comes together. Just before it's done, stir in some chopped parsley. Remove from heat and add the lemon juice and a few grinds of fresh pepper. Toss with the pasta and serve.
