Ingredients
- 20 plum tomatoes
- 33/100 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 33/100 cup crushed red pepper
- 33/100 cup kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 ounce parmigiano-reggiano
- 8 ounce basil leaves
- 1 pound spaghetti
Preparation
Baking Directions:
To peel the tomatoes, bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Have a large bowl of ice water nearby.
Cut a small X on the bottom of each tomato.
Ease about five tomatoes in the pot and cook, let boil for about 15 seconds, then promptly move them to the waiting ice water.
(Do this with the remaining tomatoes.)
Pull off the skin with the tip of a paring knife.
If the skin sticks, try a vegetable peeler using a gentle sawing motion.
Cut the tomatoes in half and use your finger to flick out the seeds.
To cook the tomatoes: In a wide pan, heat the 1/3 cup of olive oil over medium-high heat until quite hot.
Add the tomatoes, red pepper flakes, and season lightly with the salt and pepper.
Let the tomatoes cook for a few minutes to soften.
Then, using a potato masher, chop the tomatoes finely.
Cook the tomatoes for 20 to 25 minutes, until the tomatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.
Serving Directions:
To serve: Bring a large pot of amply salted water to a boil.
Cook the spaghetti until just shy of al dente.
Reserve a little of the pasta cooking water.
Add the pasta to the sauce and cook over medium-high heat, gently tossing the pasta and the sauce together with a couple of wooden spoons and a lot of exaggerated movement until the pasta is just tender and the sauce, if any oil had separated from it, now looks cohesive.
(If the sauce seems too thick, add a little pasta cooking liquid to adjust it.)
Take the pan off of the heat and toss the butter, basil and cheese with the pasta in the same manner (the pasta should take on an orange hue) and serve immediately.
Tips:
To chiffonade is to stack the leaves one on top of the other and roll tightly into a cylinder.
Then slice the cylinders of leaves crosswise into thin strips.