For Mark Consuelos, the pasta-bilities for a last meal are endless — or if you ask Kelly Ripa, “constantly changing.”
The Live with Kelly and Mark co-host duo discussed how pasta is “scientifically linked to increasing happiness” on Friday’s previously recorded episode, which they both agreed with. While Ripa highlighted that “some of [their] favorite meals together” have involved pasta, Consuelos delved into his ideal “last meal,” which Ripa insisted is “constantly changing.”
“Our kids always ask us this,” Ripa explained. “They’re like, ‘What’s your death row meal?’ And I’m like, ‘Why are we on death row?’ I’m like, ‘Why do you put us on death row?’”
Nonetheless, Consuelos took a moment to detail his perfect last meal.
“Rigatoni. Al dente. Almost undercooked, but just on the verge of not undercooked,” he shared, which Ripa deemed “Italian al dente.”
Consuelos continued, “The large gauge rigatoni. Not the little baby ones. I like the large gauge, right? And then when you take it out of the water and strain it, I want a little bit of butter in there. Just mix it with butter, let the butter melt all over it.
“Then you put it back in there, and you put some rigatoni bolognese on top of that rigatoni, and then you shave some parmesan cheese over that, and then I am happy,” he said. “And then when some of the bolognese meat gets inside the noodle, love that. That’s my death row meal.”
After the studio audience issued Consuelos a round of applause, Ripa chimed in, revealing the origins of this recipe.
“So are you assuming that your mother is the chef at Alcatraz?” she quipped.
While Consuelos teased, “that’s correct,” Ripa added, “I mean, wherever there’s a death row prison, your mom is in there making you [pasta]?”
Consuelos highlighted that “pasta makes [him] happy,” to which Ripa replied, “Yeah, but I know it’s your mother’s rigatoni.”
“The way she makes it,” she added with a chuckle. “And the way she grates the cheese very fine.”
However, Ripa disagreed with Consuelos about the rigatoni, expressing her preference for a “long pasta noodle.”
“Give me a spaghetti, give me a fettuccine,” she shared.
Live with Kelly and Mark airs on weekdays. Check out their website for your local listings.
