Puttanesca Night!!!

It's taken two weeks, but we did it! Despite slogging through the quagmire of The Flu That Won't Feckin' Go Away, Puttanesca Night in Greenwood finally came... with a vengeance. Sexy Sick Boy and Poxy Cripple cooked, sang along to Interpol, made up lyrics to Sigur Rós ("Insiiiiide... inside, inside, insii-iiiide..."), and polished off an entire bubbly bottle of fruity moscato d'asti... even before I finished making the dough. ("But it was sooooo tasty!") Champions that they are, though, Boy and Jeeps got busy earlier in the afternoon and also conjured up a massive hint~of~ginger~crusted cheesecake. I wish I could show you pictures, but... carnage is never a pretty sight.

For the first time ever, I flew solo and made the tagliatelle entirely on my own: used Jamie Oliver's recipe of 1 lb bread flour to 5 large eggs, chilled the dough for a half~hour, then cranked golf~ball sized lumps through the pasta roller, starting with setting 1 and working it down to 4 (go no thinner than 5 for a denser, chewier texture!). Meanwhile, Chef Boy made the gorgeously~addictive puttanesca sauce, courtesy of Cook's Illustrated, March 2002 Issue. (He also chopped in some of the reserved prosciutto fat trimmings we'd saved from our cured meat, smoked salmon, & assorted cheese dinner a few days ago.)

Once everything was tossed together, we polished the dish off with some freshly grated Parmigiano and a whisper of truffle oil... et voilà! Boy and Jeeps had also made a fresh pesto which was meant to go into the pasta, but was entirely forgotten about until just now. Recipe for the puttanesca's below, in case you'd like to make it for yourself!

All I can say is, now I understand how Italian mamas get so lovely, squishy, and soft.

PASTA PUTTANESCA

Serves 4.

The pasta and sauce cook in just about the same amount of time. If you like the fruitiness of extra-virgin olive oil, toss 1 tablespoon into the sauced pasta before serving.

Ingredients

4 medium cloves garlic, minced to paste (1 packed tablespoon)
salt
1 pound spaghetti
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
4 teaspoons minced anchovies (about 8 fillets)
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained, 1/2 cup juice reserved
3 tablespoons capers, rinsed
1/2 cup black olives (such as Kalamata), pitted & chopped coarse
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves

Instructions

1. Bring 4 quarts water to rolling boil in large Dutch oven or stockpot.

Meanwhile, mix garlic with 1 tablespoon water in small bowl; set aside.

When water is boiling, add 1 tablespoon salt and pasta; stir to separate pasta.

Immediately heat oil, garlic mixture, red pepper flakes, and anchovies in large skillet over medium heat; cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is fragrant but not brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and simmer until slightly thickened, about 8 minutes.

2. Cook pasta until al dente.

Drain, then return pasta to pot; add 1/4 cup reserved tomato juice and toss to combine.

3. Stir capers, olives, and parsley into sauce. Pour sauce over pasta and toss to combine, adding more tomato juice to moisten if necessary. Adjust seasonings with salt; serve immediately.


Per Serving:

Cal 550; Fat 11 g; Sat fat 2 g; Chol 5 mg; Carb 96 g; Protein 20 g; Fiber 5 g; Sodium 1470 mg

photo credit: Jeeps took all photos!