Ooh, I do love an eponymous recipe! Especially when it comes out of the blue from a new reader of the blog who sent it over to me from France. This is one of the things I ADORE about working on this project, getting emails from people all over the world who like the idea and contribute facts, recipes and test cooking notes. You GORGEOUS people!
I was feeling rather low for various reasons today but when I got this recipe I thought (as Jim and Sanja would put it) “Oh NUTS. Who bloody cares?” So I got the wherewithal for this on my way home and there is a pot of Spaghetti A La Jack La Rue on the hob right now. I am rather alarmed at the amount of olive oil in the recipe (shades of Oliver Hardy’s Spaghetti With Meatballs) but as Jack’s real name was Gaspere Biondolillo we can only presume that he knew what he was doing!
Lovely Phoebe who sent me the recipe says, “Glenda Farrell’s little boy used to watch him make it every week for everyone at the Hillview Hotel — the five Blondells, Pat O’Brien and his wife, the Farrells…” and I love the fact that Jack tested his spaghetti for doneness just the way I do “by throwing it against the wall.”
The sauce will go in the freezer for when Yadrian comes round for a second attempt at watching La Dolce Vita. This time I am going to bed early the night before in an attempt to stay awake. Thank you so much Phoebe for taking the time to send me this recipe. As Jack might say, “uno sconosciuto e’ un amico che non hai ancora incontrato” – strangers are just friends you haven’t met yet… xx
Picture of Jack from the glorious Stirred Straight Up blog…
