(ah-lee-oh eh ol-lee-oh / garlic & oil

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio (ah-lee-oh eh ol-lee-oh/garlic & oil)

Growing up on my grandparent’s farm, this dish was a regular and often served at dinner. It was known as the “Friday Fish Night Spaghetti.” My grandfather, Giuseppe Badalamenti from Carini, Sicily, Italy, and my mother cooked it often. They would sometimes add anchovies to the sauce, which my mother called it Pasta Aglio e Olio. My mother also made her own red peppers by drying the Italian hot peppers, then adding them to hot oil and fry them until they puffed up. In the culinary industry, chefs call this dish “midnight pasta” which was a quick and easy meal to prepare after working in a restaurant.

This dish originated in the Napoli (Naples) Italy region. The original recipes did not have cheese, which many recipes today use Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Buon appetito!

Spaghetti Aglio e Olio

4-8 servings (8 with a 2 oz. serving)

Ingredients

1 pound spaghetti

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

8 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (peperoncino)

½ cup fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

½ cup seasoned breadcrumbs, slightly toasted in a small frying pan over low heat

Method:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil for the pasta. Add 2 tablespoons of salt to the boiling water, then add the spaghetti. Cook according to the box, usually 10 minutes for al dente.
• In a large sauté pan, add the olive oil and garlic to a cold pan over medium heat. Stir the garlic until the oil sizzles, turn the heat down to medium low. Cook garlic until slightly golden, about 2 minutes. Do not burn the garlic.
• Stir in the pepper flakes. Then add ½ cup of the pasta water. Simmer the garlic mixture to reduce the liquid about 1/3.
• Add the cooked pasta and parsley to the garlic mixture. Toss to completely cover the pasta with the oil and garlic mixture. Add salt to taste. Let the pasta rest for 5 minutes to absorb all the flavors.
• Sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

Options:

• Sprinkle Parmigiano-Reggiano on top before serving
• Add a 2 ounce can of anchovies in olive oil, chopped, to oil and garlic mixture