Pasta Puttanesca

Made this Italian classic (my favorite) last night for friends. I've tried different variations, and this is the best. I used to fear the anchovy, but don't fear it, it makes the meal.

Besides this being a classic meal, you can always tell the story of the name of this meal. Puttanesca refers to "puton" or "whore"- basically the ladies of the night are thought to have made this dish as it was easy and they had time later (or before?) to perform their tasks.

Just an aside- I do make all of my meals organic. I feel it makes a great meal.

This meal was taken from Jamie Oliver.

Ingredients
1 pound (455 grams) dried spaghetti, the best you can get- I actually prefer penne.
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (You can go 3-4)
1 handful capers, soaked in water and drained
2 handfuls big black olives, pitted
12 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped
3 small dried red chiles, crumbled ( I used a little red pepper flakes instead.)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
Extra-virgin olive oil
2 (14 ounce/400gram) cans tomatoes, drained and chopped
1 good handful fresh basil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Cook the spaghetti in salted, boiling water until al dente. Meanwhile fry the garlic, capers, olives, anchovies, chiles, and oregano in a little olive oil for a few minutes. Add the tomatoes, bring to a simmer, and continue to cook for 4 or 5 minutes, until you have a lovely tomato sauce consistency. Remove from the heat, plunge the drained spaghetti into it, toss it over, and cover with the sauce. Rip all the basil over it, correct the seasoning, and drizzle with good extra-virgin olive oil.

What to do on those nights...

Well what do you cook on the nights where you don't feel like making a recipe from scratch and you don't have any fresh meats/ fruits/ veggies? I want to talk about those nights as well. I am hardly pulling recipes from the Gourmet cookbook every night. (Though, it's one of my favorites- all of the recipes are easy and short but taste... well... gourmet. My only complaint- no photos. But Gorumet is connected to epicurious.com, so you can find photos there for many of the recipes, along with many delightful tips.)

Anyways, I digress...what to do on those nights you get home late and you just need FOOD? And you want to be healthy as possible or at least, get some good nutrients.

Well, today I am going to discuss one of my favorites- Ba.rilla PLUS! I love it. It tastes a lot better than a lot of other Multigrain pastas I've tried. (I am Italian and we always had the GOOD pasta, so I am a bit of a pasta snob.) But usually pasta is such a no-no with it's a carbarifficness....Not with with this product.



This is their description "Made with golden semolina and wholesome flaxseed, spelt, oats, barley, and legumes, Barilla PLUS® nourishes your body with multi-grain goodness–and nourishes your soul with rich, delicious flavor." Found here: http://www.barillaus.com/Pages/Product-Landing.aspx?brandID=5

There are 17 grams of protein in one uncooked cup!
It has 7 grams of fiber (28% of recommended amount!
It's a good source of Omega 3's!

They also have many shapes, which is exciting for me. (again as an Italian- you use different shapes with different sauces! Very picky!) Last night I made the angel hair with a touch of pesto (not too healthy), olive oil, and pine nuts. I have also used walnuts too. If I had more fresh in season veggies, I would have chopped them and tossed them in as well.

So, this is my product recommendation of the day. The whole meal took about 20 minutes to prepare- and it was mighty tasty too.