Sugo alla puttanesca

The grey Seattle winter presses upon me in the most unfavorable of manners as I close my eyes and dream of far away lands where the breeze is balmy and the food is spicy; all I want at this moment is to be warm! Sugo alla puttanesca is the ideal treat for a day like today- it's zesty, hot, and vibrant- just the vacation I'm seeking to transport my senses to the sizzling, Ischian sun.

Sugo alla puttanesca, or Puttanesca sauce, began to pop-up around the early 1960's in Southern Italy- specifically in Ischia, a small island off the coast of Naples in the Campania Region. The birth of the sugo, or sauce, is draped in mystery. It could have been born out of the Napoleon brothels as a means to nourish the roused customers; or it could have been created by the famed Ischian restaurateur, Sandro Petti, as a way to feed his friends after hours with whatever he found in the pantry, which happened to include anchovy, tomato, garlic, onion, caper, and our star- the olive.* Despite, or possibly because of its mysterious origins, sugo alla puttanesca has become beloved amongst those of us yearning to taste the sun.

* For a more detailed account of the origins of sugo alla puttanesca, visit Jeremy Parsen’s incredibly enlightening blog about everything-Italian-food: http://dobianchi.com/2008/01/13/the-origins-of-sugo-alla-puttanesca/

Recipe for sugo alla puttanesca:

Ingredients:

½ cup extra virgin olive oil

1 Medium onion, minced

4-8 Garlic gloves, minced

¼ - ½ tsp red pepper flakes to taste

Pinch salt and pepper to taste

1 32 oz. can of whole, peeled tomatoes, pureed

4-6 Tbs capers (to taste)

¼- ½ cup pitted and halved olives (traditionally black, such as Kalamata, or a mixture of your favorite olives)

¼ cup chopped parsley, basil, or combination of the two

3-5 anchovies, filleted and chopped (these can be omitted if you are making a vegan sauce)

1 box of your favorite thin, long pasta such as spaghetti or linguine.

I. The Sauce

*Give yourself enough time to let the sauce simmer for at least 30-60 minutes before eating.

1. Coat the bottom of a large saucepan with olive oil over med-high heat

2. Add onion, garlic, pepper flakes, salt and pepper and sauté until just barely browned

3. Add tomato puree and scrape-up any brown bits of the bottom of the pan (de-glaze) to add a richer flavor to the sauce.

4. Let the sauce simmer for at least 30 – 45 minutes, until it’s thickened and no longer watery

5. About 10 minutes before you’re ready to eat, cook your pasta until mostly done, but still crunchy

6. Add the capers and olives and simmer for 5 minutes

7. Add anchovies and herbs, season with salt and pepper, and turn down the heat

8. Add the pasta and let it finish cooking in the sauce (about 2-3 minutes)

Serve with a drizzle of spicy olive oil, some crumbled ricotta, if you have it, and revel in the intoxicating essence of a sauce that was created in and by the sizzling Italian sun.

Happy Eating!

- Andreya