Sunday Sauce alla Bellino alla Pacino

A Pot of SUNDAY SAUCE

alla BELLINO alla PACINO

“SOME CALL IT GRAVY”

SUNDAY SAUCE

Daniel Bellino Zwicke

AMAZON.com

SUNDAY SAUCE

Daniel Bellino-Zwicke’s recipe for Sunday Sauce is a classic Italian-American gravy, featuring a long simmer time and a combination of meats

. His recipe is published in his book, Sunday Sauce: When Italian-Americans Cook.

About Daniel Bellino’s recipe –

Bellino-Zwicke’s recipe, like others in his cookbook, is based on traditional Italian-American family recipes and food culture.

It celebrates the tradition of simmering a meat-based tomato sauce for several hours to create a rich flavor.
An excerpt from his book notes that meat combinations often include sausages, meatballs, and beef braciole, though pork neck and veal shank are also possible additions.
His book also includes recipes for famous movie-inspired sauces, such as Clemenza’s Sunday Sauce from The Godfather and Sinatra’s Spaghetti & Meatballs.
Where to find the recipe
The book: The full recipe is available in his cookbook, Sunday Sauce: When Italian-Americans Cook. This can be purchased from online retailers like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and AbeBooks.

Excerpts: Excerpts and summaries of the recipe’s approach and ingredients can be found on Daniel Bellino-Zwicke’s personal website and various food blogs.
Inspired recipes: Since Bellino-Zwicke’s recipe is a classic version of the Italian-American Sunday Sauce, many similar recipes exist online, often referencing the same key elements, like a long simmer time and a combination of meats.
General Sunday sauce preparation
While the specific recipe is proprietary to Bellino-Zwicke’s book, the general method for this type of Sunday sauce, or “gravy,” is widely known. It involves:

Browning a combination of meats, such as Italian sausages, meatballs, and pork.

Adding aromatics like onion and garlic.
Combining with tomatoes and other flavorings (such as tomato paste, wine, and herbs).
Slow-simmering for several hours to allow the flavors to meld and the meats to become tender.
The final sauce can then be served over pasta, with the cooked meat as a second course.

“MAKING SUNDAY SAUCE”

Author DANIEL BELLINO ZWICKE

At UNCLE TONY’S HOUSE

LODI, NEW JERSEY

MORE on SUNDAY SAUCE

Daniel Bellino-Zwicke’s book,

Sunday Sauce: When Italian-Americans Cook, doesn’t contain just one single recipe, but rather presents a variety of Sunday sauce traditions reflecting different family customs. The core difference between the recipes is typically the combination of meats used.

Here are the variations of Sunday sauce included in the book, based on Bellino-Zwicke’s writing:

The popular trio: Many families, including the most popular version Bellino-Zwicke describes, make their sauce with a trio of Italian sausages, meatballs, and beef braciole. This is considered a foundational version of the dish.

A simpler sauce: For some, a simpler version of the sauce is made with just sausages and meatballs. This version is notably featured as Pete Clemenza’s sauce in The Godfather.
Pork variations: Other families incorporate pork into their sauce. Some versions use pork neck, while Bellino-Zwicke mentions that he sometimes makes his Sunday sauce with sausages, meatballs, and pork ribs.
Other meat options: The author notes that other meats can be added to the mix. Some families might include chicken thighs or a veal shank.
“Secret Sauce”: The cookbook also includes a “Secret Sauce,” or Salsa Segreta, recipe. Inspired by the old-school Italian red-sauce joint Gino’s of Lexington Avenue, this version is distinct from the typical meat-heavy Sunday sauce.

“RED SAUCE”

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Bellino on Pacino – Al Pacino Favorite Pasta – Recipe

AL PACINO

AL PACINO Eating PASTA

AL’S FAVORITE PASTA

Al Pacino is a big fan of a pasta dish called spaghetti aglio e olio. It’s a Neapolitan dish that features spaghetti noodles, good olive oil, lots of garlic and red pepper flakes for a spicy kick. It goes without saying the pasta dish and the Scarface star have been linked together a lot in recent history.

Al Pacino’s love of spaghetti aglio e olio also came up in Daniel Bellino Zwicke’s Positano The Amalfi Coast – Travel Guide – Cookbook.

“When I was the wine director at Barbetta Ristorante in New York City, whenever Al came into the restaurant, he would often ask if we could make him a plate as it wasn’t on the menu,” Zwicke wrote. “Al literally made us an offer we couldn’t refuse, naturally we didn’t, and we always gave Mr. Pacino a plate of his beloved spaghetti aglio olio, just the way he liked it. You’re welcome Al.”

………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Yes, it was Italian Cookbook author Daniel Bellino Z, an Italian-New Yorker like Pacino who first let it out of the bag that Al Loved Spaghetti with Garlic & Oil. It was with Bellino’s publication of his book Sunday Sauce in 2014, where the author first writes about Pacino’s love of this pasta, which no one had known about before the publication of Bellino’s Sunday Sauce. Daniel knew Al Pacino’s love for Spaghetti Aglio Olio, as whenever Al Pacino would come to the restaurant where Bellino was the Wine Director, Pacino would always ask him if he could get a plate of Spaghetti with Garlic & Oil, as it was not on the menu. The restaurant in question was Barbetta on West 46th Street in New York. of course Bellino said “Yes.” Daniel went into the kitchen and told the cooks, who naturally made the dish, which Daniel brought out to Mr. Pacino, and he was always quite pleased.

….. The above paragraph is from PARADE MAGAZINE April, 2025

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

When writing his book Sunday Sauce, Bellino figured it would be a great recipe and story to add to his book. All Italian-Americans love the dish, including Al Pacino, so Daniel wrote up his recipe, and told the story of Al eating at Barbetta, and always asking for the dish. And yes, everyone loves the story, and the recipe for Spaghetti alla Pacino, which Daniel named after the great Italian-American actor from the Bronx, New York.

In April 2025 Parade Magazine published the story of New York writer Daniel Bellino-Zwcike writing this story about bring Al Pacino his favorite pasta, putting the recipe for Pacino Pasta, and the story about Pacino eating it at Barbetta Ristorante, in his book Sunday Sauce. Once Parade Magazine published the story about Bellino & Pacino, the story spread like wildfire, and now hold the world knows Al Pacino’s favorite pasta. – Spaghetti with Garlic & Oil (Aglio e Olio).

The rest is history.

PS … Bellino also put the rescipe in his latest book – POSITANO The AMALFI COAST – Travel Guide – Cookbook.

This book is also available on Amazon.com

SUNDAY SAUCE

alla BELLINO alla PACINO

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Grandma Bellino’s Italian Cookbook, is based on Recipes from Giuseppina Salemi Bellino, who was born and raised in Lercara Friddi, Sicliy, the same town that Charles “Lucky” Luciano, and Martino Saverino Sinatra (Frank Sinatra ‘s father) were born.

Giuseppina immirgatedfrom Lercara Friddi to New York in 1904, with her husband Fillipo Bellino. A few years later they moved to Lodi, New Jersey, a few miles away from New York City. At the time, Lodi, was a town that was made up of Italian Immigrants 100%, mostly of Sicilian or Neapolitan origins.

Giuseppina’s grandson Daniel Bellino grew to love food so much, he went to Culinary School, and worked his way up to become the Chef at Corrado Italian Restaurant, after working for a few years in French and Italian Restuarants. He open the 1st Venetian Wine Bar (Bacaro), Bar Cichetti, where he was the Chef, Wine Director and Managing Partner.

Daniel traveled extensively in Italy, learning about all regions of Italian Food, and gathering many great recipes. He published his first book La Tavola in 2012, followed by his Best Selling Italian Cookbook SUNDAY SAUCE in 2013.

Daniel’s book Grandma Bellino’s Cookbook is based on his Nonna Bellino’s Recipes, and other recipes from Bellino family members (Mother Lucia, Aunt Fran, Aunt Helen, & Uncle Tony).

NY Italians Make Sunday Sauce on Black Friday

CLEMENZA with His SAUSAGE & MEATBALLS

“He’s gonna Shove them in The SAUCE”

He Shows Michael (AL Pacino) how to make SAUCE for 20 GUYS (Mobsters)

From Francis Ford Coppola’s “The GODFATHER”

Based on the Novel by Mario Puzo

FAICCO’S PORK STORE

Greenwich Village, New York

We’re making Clemenza’s Mob War #Godfather Sunday Sauce (Gravy) on Black Friday. We’re not gonna waste our time waiting on lines, getting all “Bent Out of Shaped,” and stressed out like those people who shop on Thanksgiving and Black Friday. No, our day is going to be a whole lot better and more fulfilling than fight traffic and crowds. We go down early in the morning to our local Italian pork Store Faicco’s on Bleecker Street to get all our stuff for our tasty Sunday Sauce.

I pick up all the meats I need to make the my Sunday Sauce alla Clemenza. I need Italian Sweet Sausages, Braciole, San Marzano Tomatoes, and Maccheroni.

We go home, to get the Sauce started.

RECIPE alla CLEMENZA

Making the MEATBALLS

Ready to COOK

Here’s our Ingredients

Sausages, Pork Neck, Braciole

Tomatoes and Ground Meat for our Meatballs

Notice our fine bottle of Italian Wine. Barbi Brunello di Montalcino

A special wine for some special sauce.

RECIPES in The BOOK

GODFATHER SUNDAY SAUCE alla CLEMENZA

CHARLIE SCORSESE’S GOODFELLAS SAUCE alla PRIGIONE

SUNDAY SAUCE alla BELLINO

JOE DiMAGGIO’S MOTHER’S SUNDAY GRAVY

And More …

Amazon.com

The BELLINO’S Make SUNDAY SAUCE ITALIAN GRAVY

In LODI, NEW JERSEY

SUNDAY SAUCE on FRIDAY

Cousins Daniel and Anthony Bellino make their family’s famed Sunday Sauce Gravy at Anthony’s fathers house in Lodi, NJ .. They are keeping up a family tradition that they’ve been partaking in since they were young boys in the early 1960’s America. Daniel even wrote a couple books that are themed around this most important subject of SUNDAY SAUCE Italian Gravy. Daniel likes to put Pork Spare Ribs in his sauce, which he says, “Oh my God, the Ribs in the Sauce? When you cook Spare Ribs in the Gravy, you just can’t believe how tasty they are. The are so succulent and juice. They taste so Dam Good. Even better than BBQ Ribs, which I love as well. But the Ribs in the Sunday Sauce taste even better, believe it or not? I kid you not.”

Our Thanksgiving Turkey

“We had this yesterday. It came out Dam Good.”

Like all Good Italians, we started our Thanksgiving Dinner with a little Antipasto Misti of Salami, Provolone, Olives, Celery and Roast Peppers. The we sat down for a portion of Rigatoni Bolognese, made with my Famous ragu Bolognese Sauce. The we take an hour break, before sitting down for the Turkey with all the trimmings. Our Turkey came out so good.

We take another hour break before sitting down for all our desserts, which included; Pumpkin Pie, Coconut Custard Pie, Pecan Pie, “Wow, that’s a lot of Pies?”

We have Espresso, Cannolis, and Italian Cookies, and a couple shots of Amaro to finish it all off, and another Thanksgiving has come and gone.

Yes, many families will go shopping on Black Friday, and Cyber Monday, but not us. We’ll be eating Sunday Sauce on Friday and having Meatball Parmigiano Sandwiches on Meatball Parm Mondays. Now that’s Italian! What would you rather do? Fight Traffic and crowds and lines at the shopping malls, or eat Sunday Sauce and Meatballs? I know what I’ll be doing. Me, my family and friends. We Mangia Bene Tutto!

Basta!

Author Daniel Bellino Zwicke on Italian Thanksgiving and eating Sunday Sauce

on Black Friday ….