A plate of pasta will always hit the spot at South City’s Trattoria Marcella, but its Spiedini di Gamberi holds the best qualities of Italian comfort food. A pillow of sauteed spinach is the bed for a soft, creamy risotto cake, seasoned with fennel and a hint of garlic, and surrounded by a handful of plump, tender Gulf shrimp. It all gets swaddled in a soothingly rich Marsala sauce that begs to be sopped up with chunks of crusty ciabatta hot out of the oven. After eating this hearty meal, you’ll be warmed to the bone and ready for a long fall hibernation, er, nap.
This article appears in November 2014.
