Spaghetti Marco Polo | A Three Feather’s Family Favorite by Julia Child

Mister Rogers and Julia Child made an adorable video with Chef Don Brockett presenting this simple and wholesome pasta dish that Julia called “Spaghetti Marco Polo”.  In her particular way of speaking, she presents this recipe so that children can make it with their parents. The idea is that the parents do the chopping and the kids assemble the dish.  She also teaches you how to cure a new cutting board with olive oil.

This clip aired in 1974 on Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood and while Elise and Cynthia were too young to appreciate it at the time, they must have seen a re-run….  Christine wrote this recipe down in our recipe card file and it quickly became a family favorite.

Spaghetti Marco Polo – the recipe

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup chopped black olives (or green olives with pimentos)
• 1/2 cup chopped red pimento
• 1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese or shredded Swiss or Cheddar cheese
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh green onions (scallions)
• 2 cans of good quality tuna in olive oil
• 1 12-ounce package of spaghetti
• 1-2 tablespoons of butter
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• salt and pepper to taste

Feel free to alter the quantities shown depending on how many people are eating and personal preferences.

Preparation:

• Assemble the ingredients and chop, grate, prepare them individually. The tuna should be separated into flakes and the scallions should be finely chopped.

• Heat a large pot with several quarts of salted water until boiling.

• Prepare the Marco Polo “sauce” by combining the chopped ingredients into a large bowl. Walnuts, tuna, scallions, parsley, then the pimentos and cheese last.

• Cook the spaghetti using the instructions for time on the package, drain and add butter and olive oil, then salt and pepper to taste.
• Toss the pasta until the butter melts and add the toppings little by little, carefully integrating them into the pasta.

Makes 4 to 6 servings

Warm spaghetti with salt, pepper, olive oil, butter, canned tuna in oil, chopped red pimentos, green scallions, black olives, walnuts, grated cheese and parsley are combined in a hearty, satisfying meal that brings pasta to a new level.  Children and adults alike will dig into this dish. Accompany with a fresh bottle of Three Feathers Blanc de Noirs.