Recipe - Spaghetti Amatriciana

3 tablespoon Olive oil
2 One fourth Inch slices of pancetta;
minced into One fourth inch cubes,
(about One half cup total)
1 md Onion; minced in One fourth inch
pieces
2 cup Vine ripened; whole, peeled
plum tomatoes, fresh or
canned
1 One half teaspoon Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
to taste
Crushed red pepper flakes to
taste
One fourth cup Fresh basil
1 pound Dry spaghetti
One fourth cup Pecorino Romano cheese plus
2 tablespoon Pecorino Romano cheese

(Courtesy of Chef Salvador Passalacqua of Dimaio's Ristorante)

Bring 4 quarts of cold salted water to a boil. While the water is boiling,
heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a pan and render the pancetta for 2 to 3
minutes, until it is golden and most of the fat has rendered out. Remove
pancetta from the pan and set aside. In the rendered fat and oil that
remains, saute the onion until lightly golden. Crush the plum tomatoes and
add along with the pancetta, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes. When the
water is boiling, add pasta. Cook the sauce and the pasta for about 810
minutes, until the pasta is al dente. Meanwhile, slice basil into a
chiffonade and add to the sauce at the last minute (reserve some for
garnish). Drain pasta, and reserve pasta water. Toss spaghetti with the
sauce and Pecorino Romano in the pan. Add some of the pasta water (about
One fourth cup), if desired, to loosen the sauce. Serve in a pasta bowl and
garnish with basil and some more cheese.

Yield: 4 servings

Posted to recipeludigest Volume 01 Number 578 by molony molony@scsn.net
on Jan 22, 1998