Spaghetti Parkantino with Pan Roasted Tomatoes:
The heat wave finally broke, which was painfully long overdue, and has brought back the perfect days of summer where you can’t help but lounge and enjoy the warm sun. We had dinner with close friends recently who made us this dish they had learned while traveling through Tuscany in Italy. It was a very fun evening, and I genuinely learned something new, and which was clearly something to reverse-engineer and experience 
again. I remain continuously in awe with how the most straight-forward dishes can be so profoundly memorable. It is recipes like this that reel me back to the basics – simple, fresh ingredients, with a touch of TLC, makes for a perfect meal. Campari Tomatoes are deep red and larger than cherry tomatoes, and are the perfect size and texture for pan roasting. In this version, the added lemon in the tapenade offered hints of summer, and brought out the sweetness of the olives. Someday soon, after we finish learning to speak Italian, we plan to travel to Tuscany and experience it all firsthand – and just how exceptional a simple and elegantly prepared meal can be.
SECRET INGREDIENT: Lemon juice
TIP: Undercooking the pasta delivers a rustic and unique texture.
Spaghetti Parkantino with Pan Roasted Tomatoes
- Spaghetti (8 oz)
- Anchovies (3, plus 2 tsp oil from tin)
- Capers (2 Tbsp)
- Italian Taggiasca olives (1/3 cup, pitted) alternatively Kalamata
- Lemon juice (2 Tbsp)
- Fresh Basil (4 leaves, torn)
- Campari Tomatoes (12, cut in half)
- Garlic (5 cloves, smashed whole)
- Olive oil (2 Tbsp)
- Salt & fresh pepper
- Parmesan Reggiano (1/2 cup, plus garnish)
- In a food processor, combine anchovies, cappers, olives, lemon juice, basil, and fresh cracked pepper, and pulse to a course texture.
- In a large skillet on medium low heat, add olive oil and slowly sauté tomatoes, cut side up, for 15 minutes. Add smashed garlic, and cook for 15 more minutes. Season lightly with salt and fresh cracked pepper.
- In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta for 10 minutes until just “before” al dente (looking to achieve a firm texture). Remove from heat and drain pasta. Return pasta to pot, and stir in olive mixture and parmesan.
- To serve, add portion of pasta to plate and then tomatoes with olive oil, and top with additional parmesan.
For Antipasti
- Prosciutto di Parma
- Dry Salami
- Balsamic Vinegar cheese
- Fresh baguette
- Taggiasca Olives
-- Weather When Posted --
- Temperature: 76°F;
- Humidity: 40%;
- Heat Index: 76°F;
- Wind Chill: 76°F;
- Pressure: 30.07 in.;
Thx Christopher – I am honored that you would replicate the dish I made for you and Victoria. I also wanted to pay tribute to the original chef whose recipe I borrowed: it was from Osticcio, an Enoteca in Montalcino, run by Tullio Scrivana, an expert on Brunello, the famous wine of Montalcino, and his wife Francesca, the chef. If you ever get to Montalcino you must visit Osticcio! So my wine suggestion for this dish would be a Rosso di Montalcino, which is a wine made, like its big brother Brunello, with 100% sangiovese. It is essentially made with the same grapes and by the same producers that make Brunello, but it is aged for less time and is often made with younger vines. Some people refer to it as “baby Brunello”. I love the Rossos with simple food like this spaghetti dish. There are now more and more Rossos available and they are usually in the $20 – $30 range.