Katie Parla's mint cavatelli recipe
Quick and easy – the perfect pasta recipe to whip up in no time to make the rest of the week more bearable. This week, discover journalist and cookbook author Katie Parla's minty pasta, created live from Rome.
- 500 g fresh cavatelli
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 can of whole tomatoes
- 3 Roma tomatoes
- 45 g of fresh pulley
- 1 large handful of fresh basil or parsley
- 1 teaspoon of peperoncino or red chili flakes
- 7 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil
- Sea salt
- Chili oil
- Start by preparing the pesto. In a mortar, crush the garlic with a pestle and a large pinch of salt until you obtain a paste. Gradually add the pepperoni and basil. Pour in olive oil (no more than 3 tablespoons) to hydrate the herbs and thoroughly incorporate everything into the paste. Heat the remaining oil in a large pan over medium heat. When it begins to shimmer, add the pesto and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently. Add the peperoncino and cook for about 30 seconds. Add all the tomatoes (the Roma tomatoes halved, the others crushed by hand), season with salt, and simmer for about 25 minutes, until the sauce begins to thicken. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil, cook the cavatelli for about 3 minutes, and drain, reserving the cooking water. Add the cavatelli to the sauce, stir, and adjust the consistency with a little pasta water if needed. Cook for 1 more minute, stirring regularly, until the sauce coats the cavatelli well. Season with salt if necessary, add chili oil if desired, and serve immediately.
- If you can't get your hands on pulieio, fresh mint can do the trick.
"Puleggio is a wild herb from the Irpinia region of Campania, locally called pulieio. It is similar to mint but with more intense and persistent aromas and flavors, and can be used both medicinally and in cooking. This dish of cavatelli with tomato and pulieio pesto is a wonderful reminder that there, food is also considered medicine."
Schedule
Start by preparing the pesto. In a mortar, crush the garlic with a pestle and a large pinch of salt until you obtain a paste. Add the pepper and basil little by little. Pour in olive oil (no more than 3 tablespoons) to hydrate the herbs and thoroughly incorporate everything into the paste.
Heat the remaining oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When it begins to shimmer, add the pesto and cook for a few minutes, stirring frequently. Add the peperoncino and cook for about 30 seconds. Add all the tomatoes (the Roma tomatoes halved, the others crushed by hand), season with salt, and simmer for about 25 minutes, until the sauce begins to thicken.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil, cook the cavatelli for about 3 minutes and drain them, reserving the cooking water.
Add the cavatelli to the sauce, stir, and adjust the consistency with a little pasta water if needed. Cook for 1 more minute, stirring regularly, until the sauce coats the cavatelli well. Season with salt if necessary, add chili oil if desired, and serve immediately.
