Spaghetti
Italian goodness with an easy home-made sauce.
I am not a big fan of overly saucy spaghetti, nor am I fan of canned sauces since they're all usually sweetened. I think spaghetti should be more balanced, where the sauce adds to the pasta on the plate (along with whatever else was added to the dish).
The best plate of spaghetti I've ever eaten was from a Wolfgang Puck restaurant in MGM. I think it strikes a great balance in the ratio of noodle to sauce, and it's not overly sweet. I am nowhere close to being able to replicate that plate, but I did find something that works pretty well at home.
I adapted this recipe from the NYT Cooking - Classic Marinara Sauce recipe.
Ingredients
1 pack spaghetti pasta
1 28-ounce can whole San Marzano tomatoes
½ stick butter
7 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup water
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
1 tsp kosher salt
1 large fresh basil sprig
Instructions
Prepare pasta according to package instructions, al dente.
In a large bowl, crush the tomatos by hand.
Pour and swish 1 cup of water into the tomato can.
In a large skillet, heat the butter over medium heat.
Add garlic and cook until it's aromatic, but do not let it brown.
Add the tomatoes, can of tomato water, red pepper flakes (optional), and salt. Stir.
Add the whole basil sprig, but do not stir it in. Let it wilt, then submerge in sauce.
Simmer the sauce until it thickens and the oil on surface is a deep orange.
Remove and discard the basil from the sauce.
Add the desired amount of pasta to a large bowl.
Add the desired amount of sauce to the pasta.
Mix the pasta and sauce together until the pasta is uniformly covered.
Serve on a plate, add any toppings, and enjoy!
Tips
- I like to serve this with Italian-style meatballs.
- Don't drown your spaghetti with sauce with this recipe. Instead, combine the pasta and sauce in a large bowl, and serve once it's well mixed.