Monday, February 1, 2010

The Spaghetti Series - All'Amatriciana (#1)

Lets face it: Monday's are as bad as those leftovers sitting in the back of your fridge for over a week.

In order to brighten Mondays up a bit, I decided to create a weekly piece known as The Spaghetti Series. Each Monday I will post a new dish made with spaghetti for readers. It will be something simple, since Monday nights one is usually rather exhausted, but flavorful and fun to make.

Tonight I begin the series with a sauce called Amatriciana - a traditional Italian sauce based on dried pork cheek, pecorino, and tomato - from the town of Amatrice. There are many recipes out there with many variations, so I took the basics and then made it my own. It had a wonderful heat to it for a cold winter's night, and of course bacon is one of the ultimate comfort foods (in moderation, of course!).

Spaghetti All'Amatriciana

Ingredients
2 28 oz cans of diced tomatoes
4 pieces of unsmoked bacon, center cut
2 medium onions, diced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon dried marjoram
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons fresh parsley
2 cups of dry white wine
salt and pepper to taste
8 oz of cooked spaghetti
grated pecorino romano

Directions
- In a heavy saucepan, cook bacon until its well done and crispy. Remove and drain. Crumble.
- Pour off all but one tablespoon of bacon goodness and place pot back on low heat
- Add garlic and stir, 1 minute
- Add onions and stir, scraping up the nice brown bits, 5 minutes
- Add 1 cup of white wine (the 2nd cup is yours to drink), red pepper, marjoram, oregano, and parsley and let reduce (about 5 minutes)
- Add tomatoes and let simmer for 30 minutes
- Working in batches, puree the sauce in a blender
- Return to pot and let simmer for another 30 minutes
- Serve over spaghetti and top with grated romano cheese and some crumbled bacon.






23 comments:

  1. Ahh, this sounds fabulous. How could you go wrong with the bacon and the wine?!?!

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  2. I love this pasta dish! Pasta on Mondays is a great idea. I need something to cheer me up on Mondays!

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  3. I've never had spaghetti sauce with bacon! It's a definite must-try for me. It sounds really delicious. I love your idea for a spaghetti series!

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  4. Nothing like a good dish of spaghetti on a weeknight - yum!

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  5. Mmm.. what a delicious sauce for pasta! Sounds like a must try!

    I just got back to town and I know you left me a comment that said you will email me the address for the chips giveaway but I couldn't find your message anywhere. If you still would like to get the sample, can you please email me (natasha@5starfoodie.com) with the address or either way. Thanks!

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  6. What a gorgeous pasta. I love anything that has bacon in it. Thanks for sharing this one. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary

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  7. Mmm! Anything with crumbled bacon is a winner in my recipe book!! ;D This looks excellent!

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  8. You're right, Aimee. Bacon should be a food group!
    Love your pasta Mondays! This one is a nice, simple, flavorful pasta dish! Easy and quick.

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  9. What a great idea - Pasta Monday! Add bacon to that and you can't go wrong. Love it - thank you,
    Susan

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  10. I love the idea of having a spaghetti night - pasta is so great for a quick meal. I'm vegetarian and this has become my staple pasta dish... I'll be interested to get some more inspiration from your ideas :)

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  11. The bacon is a perfect addition in my opinion. What a hearty and delicious pasta.

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  12. Popped in to say hello! Speghetti and bacon? My favorite things in the world!!

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  13. Oh mama mia...another drool worthy elicous pasta.......fantastic spaghetti....

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  14. This looks so good Chef Aimee! Another fine pasta dish! Yum!

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  15. Pasta amatriciana is one of my all-time favorites! SO perfect for a quick weeknight dinner.

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  16. Great idea for a Pasta Monday...yummy! I love pasta, so recipes are greatly appreciated. Now that I see this, I would love a nice swirl of THIS pasta. It sounds deeeeee-lish!!

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  17. how does not like spaghetti and pasta? I just love the recipe and pasta in general. I think its awesomely easy and time saver.

    Thank you for sharing,
    Neel

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  18. Spaghetti is one of the few things that will definitely not fail to make mondays better. I love amatriciana sauce! Bacon makes everything better.

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  19. Nothing is more comforting than a delicious bowl of pasta... and then seconds.
    *kisses* HH

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  20. Never tried this before.Will give a try soon.

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  21. The crumbled bacon garnish is genius! Amatriciana is my all-time favourite pasta sauce.

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  22. I LOVE your idea of doing spaghetti every Monday! I'll be over for dinner every Monday:D
    The addition of bacon in this sauce is amazing!Looking forward to next Monday.

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