11.10.2010

pasta puttanesca tonight

Feeling like a little bit of Italia for dinner, I whipped up a quick batch of puttanesca, a lovely tomato based sauce with some spice. I especially like the combination of basil, kalamata olives and capers. The best part is that it only takes about 10 minutes to prep and 40 minutes to cook. Enjoy!


Ingredients
  • 4 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 8 anchovy fillets
  • 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • Two 28-ounce can whole peeled Italian tomatoes with their juices, crushed by hand
  • Pinch of sugar
  • 2 basil sprigs
  • 1/4 cup sliced kalamata olives
  • 2 tablespoons capers, drained
  • Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

In a large saucepan, heat the oil. Add the garlic, anchovies and crushed red pepper and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the canned tomatoes with their juices. Stir in the sugar, basil, olives and capers. Season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Simmer the sauce over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it thickens, about 30 minutes. In the meantime prepare pasta of your choice. My favorite pasta with this sauce is penne.


Feeling like a variation of the puttanesca sauce, here's a great recipe for vodka sauce that's just as easy to prepare:

Ingredients
  • 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 ounces pancetta, diced
  • 6 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
  • 1/4 cup vodka
  • 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  • Two 28-ounce can whole peeled Italian tomatoes with their juices, crushed by hand
  • Pinch of sugar
  • 2 basil sprigs
  • Salt
  • 1/4 cup heavy cream

Directions

In a large saucepan, heat the oil. Sauté the pancetta, garlic and crushed red pepper over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until golden, about 5 minutes. Deglaze with vodka. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the canned tomatoes with their juices. Stir in the sugar and basil, season with salt and pepper and bring to a boil. Simmer the sauce over low heat, stirring occasionally, until it thickens, about 30 minutes. Add heavy cream and simmer for 5 minutes.


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