I made an interesting pasta dish the other night. I’m still thinking about what to make of it. I mean, it was good, but it wasn’t like the more traditional pasta dishes I’ve prepared in the past. The sauce wasn’t “sauce,” per se. It was more like softened vegetables in sort of like a broth. The best part of the dish was the artichokes, but I may be a bit biased here. I just love artichokes.
The Recipe
I’m going to say this dish was good. While it didn’t knock my socks off, it was a quality pasta dish. I don’t think I served it correctly, so any hesitation I have surrounds that fact as opposed to the taste or anything like that. All the flavors were there, but I didn’t mix the sauce and artichokes in like I was supposed to. When taking photos for this blog, I have to make things look somewhat presentable as best I can, so sometimes things aren’t mixed as well as they should be. If I were to prepare this dish again, I’d toss everything in a large bowl at the end and then divide that between bowls. That would be much better. I’d also add more olive oil to things because that’s just the best. I’ll adjust the recipe below to deal with these issues.
Ingredients
Serves: 4-6
1 Pound Dry Spaghetti
2 16-Ounce Cans Halved Artichokes, Drained
4 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil + 1/4 Cup For Dressing
1 Large Sweet Onion, Chopped
1 Teaspoon Garlic, Minced
1 28-Ounce Can Chopped Tomatoes, Drained
1 Cup Carrots, Diced
1 Cup Celery, Diced
1/2 Cup Vegetable Broth
Salt
1/4 Teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
Step-by-Step Instructions
I’d like to thank Carlo Bernasconi and Christian Teubner for their resource called The Complete Italian Cookbook. This one keeps me entertained with flipping through great recipes. That’s for sure.
Make the Sauce
Warm a large skillet over medium-high heat. Then, when the pan is to temperature, add in two tablespoons of olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and let simmer for about three minutes.
Next, add in the carrot and celery and stir all the ingredients together. Let them simmer for another five to eight minutes. The goal is to lightly brown some things to add a bit of flavor.
Finally, add in the tomatoes, broth, 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper and let everything simmer for ten minutes to fully soften the vegetables. When finished, transfer the contents of the skillet to a large bowl.
Brown the Artichoke
Warm a skillet over medium-high heat. Add two tablespoons of olive oil and then add in the artichoke. Fry the artichoke for about five minutes or until you see some brown edges on them. When you do, turn off the heat and transfer them to the same bowl as the other ingredients.
Cook the Pasta
While all the above is going on, fill a large pot with four quarts of water, along with one tablespoon salt. Bring the water to a boil over high heat. When the water is boiling, add in the pasta and let cook for ten to 11 minutes, or until al dente. When finished, strain the pasta through a colander and then add it to the bowl with everything else. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil and mix the ingredients well.
Plate & Serve
Divide the contents of the bowl between plates and enjoy!
The Final Spaghetti & Artichoke Dinner
I think the addition of the olive oil at the end as well as the tossing everything together will bring this dish home. If you decide to dive this recipe a try, please let me know your thoughts in the comment section down below. Thanks for reading!
Leave a Reply