Fire-Roasted Pasta Puttanesca with Crispy Breadcrumbs
This post is sponsored by Muir Glen and TheFeedfeed. All opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that support me!
If you’ve never made pasta puttanesca before, you’re in for a treat. This is a classic pasta dish that’s a great back-pocket recipe for a quick last-minute dinner because it uses mostly pantry staples which makes it super convenient and it comes together really fast. Like the time it takes to boil the pasta fast. It’s a simple and rustic pasta made from pantry staples like sweet tomatoes, briny capers and olives, spicy chili flakes, fresh tender herbs. I added a few updates to add even more flavor. The toasted breadcrumbs add a nice crunch since most of the other components are softer in texture and the Muir Glen Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes add a real depth of flavor and hint of smokiness. One of my favorite staples I always have in my pantry are Muir Glen tomatoes, especially during the fall and winter months when tomatoes are not in season. Muir Glen’s tomatoes are perfection year-round because they believe a better tomato starts with being grown organically. Couldn’t agree more! And they also started a composting program to eliminate waste during their growing process which is so awesome.
I’m so happy to be partnering with Muir Glen to create this recipe and I headed to Central coop here in Seattle to pick up all the goods, including plenty of Muir Glen tomatoes. You know I love shopping local and supporting my community and local farmers and shopping at the coop is a great way to do that. Beyond that, they are not a grocery chain, but rather a member of the community themselves so they work for the sustainable development of their communities and because they are member owned and operated, being a member means they operate with complete autonomy and independence. In other words: they put their community and members first! And from January 22 to February 4,14.5 oz cans of Muir Glen tomatoes are 10 for $10 at your local coop. You can find your local coop here. Alright, now let’s get to the recipe!
Fire-Roasted Pasta Puttanesca with Crispy Breadcrumbs
serves 4
pasta
1 14.5 oz can Muir Glen Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes
2 T olive oil
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
4 anchovy fillets
1/4 c capers
1/2 c castelvetrano olives, pitted and roughly chopped
pinch red chili flake
1 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 c fresh tender herbs, roughly chopped, such as oregano, basil, or parsley
8 oz bucatini pasta
bread crumbs
2 c stale bread, torn into chunks
1 T butter
1 T olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
make the breadcrumbs
Add the bread chunks into a food processor and pulse until they break down into course breadcrumbs. In a large cast-iron skillet over medium heat, add the butter and olive oil. Once the butter has melted, add in the bread and season with salt and pepper and toss to combine. Cook a few minutes until they start to turn golden-brown, then stir and continue to cook until they’re all crisp and brown. Transfer to a bowl and wipe out the skillet. We’ll use it for the sauce.
make the pasta
Add the tomatoes and their juices to a large bowl and with clean hands, gently crush the tomatoes with your hands until broken down. Set aside. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil then drop the pasta in and cook about two minutes shy of the package directions as we’ll finish the pasta in the sauce. Meanwhile, make the sauce by heating the olive oil in the cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Add in the garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, just until fragrant. Add in the anchovy fillets and stir to start to break them up. Continue cooking for another minute or two until the anchovies start to break down. Add in the capers and olives and continue to cook, about a minute. Add in the tomatoes and stir to combine then cook for a few minutes, until bubbly and slightly thickened. Add in the pasta and toss to combine with the sauce. Add in about 1/4 cup of pasta water and continue to toss the pasta until sauce thickens up a bit again and coats the pasta. Add in the butter and toss everything together until sauce is glossy. Remove from heat and stir in the fresh herbs. Divide up into bowls and sprinkle with breadcrumbs. Enjoy!
