pantry pasta

I wanted to post this for the sake of remembering what we ate at least once weekly in the winter of 2014. It's this simple, simple pasta a happened upon from the NY Times food blog. The ingredient list sold me. I am a lover of all flavors bold, pungent, briny, and spicy. Plus it has kale which makes me feel healthy.

Here's the original recipe, but I add more of almost everything in the "sauce." I make it like this:

Bring a pot of water to a boil.

While your water is working on boiling, heat 2 or so T of olive oil in a large saucepan over low heat (the dial on my gas stove is at a 2 at this point). Sprinkle in some crushed red pepper flakes to your taste level (a lot for us!) and a pinch of salt. While the chile flakes are toasting, smash several garlic cloves.

Guys, I married a garlic lover. The first time I made this recipe, I used the "4 fat cloves" it calls for. Now I use something like 8 fat cloves. Sometimes more. I pluck the cloves off the head and lay them under the flat side of my knife... then I give them a WHACK to crush them and pop the papers off. So easy. And satisfying if you've had a bad day.

Now take something like 4 heaping tablespoons of capers out of their brine and dry them with a paper towel. You'll be so glad you did.

Then comes the scary part... the anchovies. I'd tasted, but never purchased anchovies until I decided to try this recipe. I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "Sick, I hate anchovies." Well, chances are you've never tried them, and if you did try them, your preconceived notions about them kept you from loving them. You are Elizabeth Bennett, and those anchovies are Mr. Darcy. Or something. Anyway -- the anchovies. Just do it. Take 4 or 5. Or 6. And add them to the chiles and oil along with the smashed garlic and the capers. Almost immediately, those anchovies will dissolve, leaving you nothing but a delicious taste that is not at all fishy. Trust.

Keep the heat low and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon, and something wonderful begins to happen. The garlic softens and turns golden, keeping a whisper of it's raw bite but mostly tasting mellow... almost roasted. The capers will caramelize and soak up the saltiness and depth of the anchovies that are now just a memory because they have literally vanished. It's magic.

By this time, your water is at a rolling boil and you can add 2 servings... maybe a half pound or so.. of short cut, whole wheat pasta to the water. We like fusilli or mini penne. Cook it until it's al dente.

With about 2 minutes left in the pasta's cooking time, add several large handfuls of kale to the sauté pan. This means half of a large bag of pre-cut, pre-washed kale from Trader Joes for me. Because I am lazy and YOLO. Sneak about 1/4 c of the pasta water into the sauté pan and stir until the kale is sautéed and soft. When the pasta is al dente, add it to the sauté pan with a slotted spoon, stirring as you go.

When the pasta is mixed into the kale mixture, turn off the heat and squeeze with the juice of 1/2 lemon. Next the original recipe gives the idea of "showering" the pasta with cheese like it's optional... and we always do this. By the bowl. We use the microplane and make a fluffy mountain of parm for each bowl. Usually I am vehemently against lemon AND cheese on pasta... it just doesn't make sense. But it's the right thing to do here. The lemon is really there to counter the salty and pungent, and the fine shaving of parmesan makes it all work together. Do it.

So that's what we're eating at least once weekly right now. For the first 4 or 5 times I made it, I made sure to add the anchovies when RP wasn't looking or before he got home from work. Then one night he glanced over his second bowl to me and said, "I love this pasta. What makes it so good?" And I felt like I had to tell him the truth, expecting him to give up on it. Let me just tell you that the man didn't care one bit and has enjoyed many happy bowls since - and he is a particular guy about his likes and dislikes (see the paragraph above about anchovies).

This is the meal I look forward to every week. It's delicious and satisfying - I hope you try it!