Easy does it

Spaghetti alla puttanesca

This Neapolitan dish is easy to make and full of flavours. The secret to the perfect "spaghetti alla puttanesca" (literally "whore's spaghetti") lies in the patience of the cook. My brother-in-law is a very patient man… his puttanesca is THE BEST! I enjoyed it for the first time in their home in Milan on a rainy day...delicious and comforting. The ingredients are typical mediterranean: olive oil, garlic and capers. I’m a big fan of capers, so the Caprese capers picked and pickled by Nonna were a special treat. That reminds me of the day that my sister and I went caper picking ourselves at the ruins of Villa Jovis. It turned out to be a real adventure. Did you know that capers grow on steep rocks and walls, sometimes very difficult to reach? We didn't... Both of us not really cliffhanger type of girls...you can imagine what happened. We almost risked our lives for a total of 5 capers!  We had fun though...

Ingredients

A big splash of olive oil extra vergine

3 cloves of garlic, peeled and sliced very thinly

grounded peperoncino, to taste

4 drained anchovy fillets cut in small pieces

1 pound of diced sweet tomatoes (pomodorini or tasty tom’s)

A handfull of drained capers

25 quality olives (we use the typical purple “gaeta” olives)

1 tablespoon of dried oregano

5 basil leafs, torn by hand

1 cup of freshly chopped parsley, preferably flat leaved

salt, to taste

1 pound spaghetti

Preparation

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and saute the garlic until golden, add peperoncino and the anchovies. Saute until the anchovies melts. Add the tomatoes and stir well. Bring the mixture to boil, reduce heat and leave to simmer over low heat. After 20 minutes add capers and olives, oregano and the fresh basil. Again, leave to simmer (don’t forget to stir every couple of minutes) until the sauce reduces and thickens. This process is neccesary to give the sauce its caracteristic sweet tomato flavour. Add a pinch of salt (to taste) and the chopped parsley. Stir, leave for 2 minutes and mix with the spaghetti. A perfect puttanesca!

Francesco swinging his 

magic wand