Spaghetti with Fresh Puttanesca

We were on a cruise recently and the ship we were on had a separate pizza restaurant! So of course we had pizza a few times. The varieties were extensive — the chef made pizzas with all sorts of toppings. Mostly I like (and ate) plain pizza Margherita, sometimes topped with arugula, but one time I chose Puttanesca. It was an OMG moment.

Puttanesca is not for everyone. It’s salty and very tangy.

But I absolutely love it.

I’ve made Puttanesca sauce for spaghetti many times, usually with canned San Marzano tomatoes. But the plum tomatoes at the market recently were too good to pass up, so I went to my trusted recipe drawer, “sauce folder” and found my fresh tomato version. It was as good as I had remembered.

Here it is:

Spaghetti with Fresh Puttanesca Sauce

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 2 medium cloves garlic, chopped

• 3 anchovies, chopped (or 1 teaspoon anchovy paste)

• 4-5 large plum tomatoes

• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

• pinch or two of crushed red pepper

• freshly ground black pepper, to taste

• 2-3 tablespoons capers, rinsed and drained

• 12-15 mixed pitted black and green imported olives, cut coarsely

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan. Add the onion and cook over medium heat for 3-4 minutes or until softened. Add the garlic and cook briefly. Add the anchovies (or paste), mix briefly, then add the tomatoes, basil and red pepper. Cook, over low-medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 7-8 minutes. Stir in the capers and olives and cook for another 5-6 minutes or until it has reached the desired consistency (use 2 tablespoons of capers if you want it less tangy).

Makes enough for 1/2 pound pasta

Tomato Eggplant Mushroom Sauce

This recipe was born of my desire to use whatever is left in my pantry and fridge, my need to not waste food, my love of inventing new recipes.

During this awful pandemic, I have not shopped. I use a shopping service, so I am more mindful when I order because I can’t just hop in the car and go to the store for a tomato.

A few months ago I was at the tail end of what was left of an order, the list I keep almost ready for the next shop. I had some tomatoes and mushrooms, a few scallions and some pasta. I always have Parmesan cheese in the fridge. I chopped the vegetables (including a clove of garlic), added some fresh oregano (it was still summer so I had some fresh from the garden) and stewed the sauce until everything was soft and fragrant. We had it for dinner over spaghetti and Ed declared it a miracle.

I have made a variation of this dish several times since then. Once, I had an eggplant, so I added that. Another time I threw in some chopped zucchini. I sometimes replaced the scallion with onion. And of course, with no fresh herbs from the garden (and none left in the fridge) I have seasoned the sauce with dried oregano.

That’s how versatile this recipe is. It’s so easy. We load it with freshly grated Parmesan, but it’s also delicious without the cheese, served as a kind of saucy side dish for beef — steak, meatballs, and so on.

Here’s one version but feel free to change this and that.

Chunky Tomato-eggplant-Mushroom Sauce

• 3 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium onion, chopped

• 2 cloves garlic, chopped

• 4-5 tomatoes, chopped or two cups cut up cherry or grape tomatoes

• 1 cup diced eggplant

• 6 ounces mushrooms, cut into chunks

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano or basil

• salt and pepper

• cooked pasta

Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan or wok/pan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes, eggplant, mushrooms, herb and salt and pepper to taste and cook, stirring occasionally for about 8-10 minutes or until the mixture is thick and sauce-like. Serve over pasta (or use as a side dish for grilled steak or chicken).

Makes enough for one pound of pasta

September Fresh Tomato Sauce

Anyone else feel that yesterday it was summer but the word September changes everything?

It’s hot and muggy. The hottest summer on record around here. And yet all of a sudden turning the page in the calendar makes me feel as if the season is over.

When I hear “September” I think back-to-school. I remember being a kid and buying new black and white notebooks and loving the feeling of writing on the thick right hand side. I hope I liked my teacher. I got new shoes. Thick sweaters that I wouldn’t wear for months.

When I hear “September” I know the food is about to change too. Purple prune plums for pie and poaching rather than the hard, sour red ones that refresh so well on a hot day. Tomatoes past their prime for eating, but perfect for sauce. The last of summer’s green tomatoes firm and bright and ready for frying. Huge zucchini, the last remnants of someone’s garden. My basil and mint are starting to decline. The dill has withered. The rosemary has seen better days.

September means it’s time to get the best of late summer produce and use up what’s left of my herbs. I just got back from our local Farmer’s Market with a load of stuff. After I finish this note the first thing I’m going to cook is tomato sauce, eat some with dinner and pack the rest into the freezer to keep summer alive later.

September Fresh Tomato Sauce

2 pounds tomatoes

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 small onion, peeled and chopped

1 large clove garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the tomatoes, cook for 20 seconds, then drain the tomatoes under cold water. Pierce the tomatoes near the stem end with the tip of a small, sharp knife, then peel back to remove the skin. Cut the tomatoes in half crosswise and squeeze each half to remove the seeds. Chop the tomatoes and set them aside. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until slightly softened. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Add the tomatoes and basil and sprinkle the sauce with salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 15-30 minutes or until it reaches the desired texture. Makes enough for one pound of pasta.

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