Spaghetti Puttanesca

I have managed to accumulate a few recipes over the last few days - plenty of cooking and not enough blogging... Spaghetti Puttanesca was Sunday dinner. I do love this recipe - despite Nigella almost ruining it for me, by calling it 'Slut Spaghetti' on her latest show! I mean, some of her recipes are great, especially her New York cheesecake, but she can go a little over the top. 

In any case, Nigella aside, this is a great recipe to convert someone on to anchovies. I say this from experience: my husband didn't go anywhere near me if I ever had anchovies in the past - and yes it was not just an excuse to avoid me! - but this recipe completely got him on-board! The anchovies completely dissolve into the sauce and they just leave a delicious savoury and salty flavour. It is also - like most of the stuff I cook at the moment - an under 30 minute recipe!

Serves 2

250g spaghetti

3 cloves of garlic, crushed or finely chopped

4-5 fillets of salted anchovies

250ml of tomato passata

3 tablespoons of olives, pitted (best if you buy good quality olives, that you pit yourself)

3 heaped teaspoons of capers

1 hand-full of chopped parsley

pepper

olive oil

Pour a tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan on a medium heat. Add the anchovies and the garlic and let them cook down for a few minutes. The anchovies should start to dissolve (keep an eye on the heat, as they tend to explode out of the pan!). Once the anchovies have become more like a paste, add the passata and lower the heat. Allow to simmer for 10 minutes or so. Put the pasta to boil. In the meantime, chop the pitted olives and the capers and add them to the sauce. Grind some black pepper into the sauce (no salt is needed, because of the anchovies). Add the cooked pasta to the sauce and cook for a further minute or two. Finally add the parsley, stir and serve immediately. Buon Appetito!