Late night pasta
A recipe for tonnarelli with anchovy tomato butter sauce PLUS the best basil oil
no. 3
Tonnarelli with Anchovy Tomato Butter Sauce
If you saw anchovy and were about to ignore - WAIT, I beg. I know what you’re thinking - “anchovy two weeks in a row?!” - and you’d be absolutely correct because I am back again with another anchovy number. In fact, I’m on a personal mission to convert anchovy haters - maybe not into lovers - but at least into using anchovy as a beautiful, salty source of umami flavour. If I have piqued your interest, please read on.
We are kicking things off a little later today in the spirit of longer evenings and lazy mornings. I often refer to this dish as the perfect late night pasta. It comes together quickly (especially if you’re using dry pasta) and despite being so beautifully simple, it is so deliciously moreish that it makes for the most delectable late night feed. Perfect for the long weekend here in Australia, where you might find yourself out of your usual Sunday routine.
Anchovy fillets are gently cooked in butter to dissolve into an indistinguishable paste, before fresh little tomatoes are thrown in and cooked down into a luscious sauce. I love pairing this with tonnarelli, made without a chitarra tool by passing a thicker sheet of pasta through the more commonly found tagliolini cutter attachment available with many pasta machines. It results in very delicate, square-cut strands of pasta.
If we are feeling a little boujee, top with a dollop of burrata to add a light and creamy contrast. Otherwise dive straight in.
On the subject of burrata
Last weekend in true pasta Sunday fashion, a few friends joined me for fresh spaghetti alla chitarra and a spread of antipasti. Sometimes I think antipasti is the best part of the meal, and one dish that’s a personal favourite and that I make literally anytime I put on a spread is burrata with basil oil. Bright green, vibrant, herbaceous oil is the perfect pairing for a ball of the good stuff, IMO.
1 large bunch of basil, roughly 60g
1/4 cup neutral oil, like vegetable or rapeseed oil
1/4 cup mild olive oil
Blanche the basil for a minute or so before transferring to an ice bath.
Once cool, squeeze out as much excess liquid as possible and add to a blender along with the oils.
Blitz until completely smooth and combined - you don’t want to see little bits of leaves in the oil.
Strain through a fine mesh sieve and discard any of the basil pulp.
Serve with burrata, mozzarella or even as a dipping oil for fresh bread
Suggested Wine Pairing
Something bright and acidic to pair with this light tomato sauce is what we’re going with today. I recently enjoyed a bottle of Unico Zelo New Disco Fiano which I think works well with this dish. It’s light, dry and has bright green apple kicks of acidity.
Sunday Soundtrack
Everything I’ve been listening to this week, throw it on and get kneading.