SALON CONFIDENTIAL: School’s Out for Summer

Welcome back! I guess it’s officially summer now, so make sure to stick around till the end of today’s story to get my favorite summer pasta recipe.

I’m writing from the International Premiere Beauty Show in Orlando Florida. It’s really exciting to see the faces of the up and coming hairdressers, the hairdressers I have known for many many years, and the icons of the industry gathering for inspiring ideas and great education. It all seems to add to the sense of community we have in the beauty industry. This is the time where hairdressers get to express their creative sides in an environment where they are not only understood, but admired and appreciated. Being surrounded by this creativity and expression reminds me of how fortunate I have been to have walked the path of this career I chose over 32 years ago. Feeling the excitement in the atmosphere of the newly certified hairdressers, I’m brought back to the moment I shared my passion with my parents and the looks on their faces in their realization that I was not going to become the lawyer, doctor or priest that they had hoped.

I also find myself reminiscing about what summer brought my way after the graduating from Cosmetology school. You may recall that I shared with you how I attended class with 68 females, and I was the only male. The day we graduated from class, a fellow student, I will call her Victoria, wanted to celebrate with me. She was an attractive, older woman, who seduced me in the parking lot. She led me by the hand to a parked, red convertible Miata. I was naive and unskilled in the romance department, but for her…she was going to be the teacher and had one thing in mind. Little did I know, this little red car was NOT her car. I don’t remember how, but we ripped our way through the soft top and my summer lessons ensued. Hours later (in reality it was probably 5 minutes), her goodbye words to me were “Schools Out for Summer!”.

I know it may seem as though my stories are over the top at times. However, it’s important for you to know that they are true and I want to show my gratitude for the opportunity to work with fantastic, passionate and dedicated hairdressers. I have been given the good fortune to change the lives of many, including my own.

School’s out for summer…so go and live some outrageous stories of your own....(and don’t forget to thank your parents for their support)

Joseph’s Seductive Broccoli Rapinni with Sausage and Orecchiette
Ingredients:
6 cloves of garlic
Pinch of salt
Pinch of red pepper flakes
1 head of broccoli rappini
1 pound of Italian sweet sausage (you substitute grilled chicken or a little of both is great as well)
1 cup of chicken broth
1 pound of orecchiette pasta
1/4 cup of olive oil
1 pint of ricotta cheese

Preparation for broccoli rappini:
Cut the ends of the rappini stems off and discard. Cut the remaining into three sections and place into a pot of cold water. Bring to boil. Boil for approximately 3 minutes and then pour into strainer. Rinse with very cold water to stop the cooking process. Sometimes I throw a few cubes of ice on top of rapinni to cool quickly.

Preparation for Sausage:
You can either broil or grill your Italian sweet sausage. After cooking, slice sausage into bite size pieces and put to the side. (Isabella- for vegetarians, omit the meat)

Peel and slice fresh garlic and sauté in a deep pan with the olive oil. Add in the broccoli rapinni. Add pinch of salt, pinch of red paper flake and sauté for 3-4 minutes over high heat. Then add the chicken broth and sausage and sauté for another minute.

While your garlic is cooking, boil water for the pasta. Make sure to add some salt to your water and cook pasta till Al DENTE.

Pour sausage and rapinni over the pasta and serve with a dollop of ricotta cheese.

I enjoy this meal with a glass of chianti wine (or two)

Makes three healthy servings.