Pasta Puttanesca
My all time favorite pasta dish! Amazing flavor, complexity and texture. I've often thought this would be a great preparation to serve on garlic bread rounds as an appetizer. Serve with a nice fresh salad and artesian bread. White wine is a wonderful accompaniment, but the flavors are strong enough to shine through a red wine as well. During the summer I've made a version of this recipe using fresh diced tomatoes and chopped fresh basil: Different but no less delightful! Since I LOVE chopping veggies and other ingredients, I chop all the ingredients ahead of time and store in little bowls. Once that's done, the actual cook time goes very quickly. Serves 4-6.
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup dried tomatoes, reconstituted Add to 1 c. boiling water; let steep
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup onion, chopped
- 2 tsp anchovy paste OR Vietnamese fish sauce, to taste
- 1/2 cup olives, green & black chopped
- 8 cloves garlic pressed or finely chopped
- 1 TB majoram or oregano, fresh
- 3 TB capers
- red pepper flakes to taste
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 lb Linguini cooked al dente
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine boiling water and dried tomatoes; set aside for 5-10 minutes to soften. Start to heat up a large pot of water to cook pasta.
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil; add onions & anchovy paste (or fish sauce) and sauté until onions are golden. Add garlic, tomatoes and their water, olives, capers and marjoram or oregano. Cook, stirring occasionally, 9-12 minutes until half the liquid has evaporated. Leave the kitchen 1 or 2 times and then return so you can appreciate the fragrance. Add final ingredients.
- While the sauce is simmering, cook pasta to your preferred doneness.
- Drain pasta thoroughly then place in a large serving bowl. Toss in sauce ingredients and serve. Buon appetito!