pronunciation

i’m someone who prides themselves on spelling and pronunciation.  for some reason my school never had spelling bees, but if they did i’m certain i would have gone far.  seriously–i can see the words spelled out in my head, and i know all the pronunciation rules.  but for some reason, i consistently mispronounce mascarpone.  is this something everyone does?  until very recently i thought that everyone mispronounced it.  sort of like most people (not me) pronounce jewelry “jewlery.”   a couple weeks ago i bought some mascarpone at blue apron and was deeply shamed by the saleslady.  i couldn’t find the mascarpone in their cheese case, so asked the woman behind the cheese counter, “do you have any marscapone.”  thinking, well, that’s how it’s said.  she pointedly said, “MAScarpone?  yes, here you go.”  so why do i say it the wrong way?  and how does everyone else say it?

all of this is the lead up to a delightfully tasty and very simple dinner i made tonight.  pasta with mascarpone and roasted grape tomatoes.  yes, the recipe was from there again.  what can i say?  i was at work and deciding what to make!  it was so good though and so so easy.  i used campanelle-shaped pasta, which is my second favorite shape next to gemelli.  and i didn’t cut the grape tomatoes in half, just roasted them whole.  broccoli rabe on the side with garlic, olive oil, and a little chicken broth.  all in all simple and satisfying. 

 except–broccoli rabe.  rapini. whatever you call it.  i love it in restaurants, but i can never seem to get rid of the overwhelming bitterness at home.  i know, it’s a bitter green so should retain some bittnerness.  but not too much, right?  so i blanch it like they tell you to, and then saute, but it still seems too bitter.  any hints?