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Pasta Puttanesca. the food of whores (and students)

Pasta Puttanesca apparently means whore’s pasta.

I have read two explanations for why it’s called this. One is that it’s a bit spicy and racy and the other (and the one I prefer) is that it can be made from ingredients that even a puttane would have in her cupboard. Which seems to me to make it a perfect candidate for student food, it's cheap and all the stuff can be kept in the cupboard and put together in a matter of minutes almost regardless of how much you've had to drink.

Not only is this dead easy and can be tuned to your personal preference. You can also make it posher (more posh?) by substituting fresh tomatoes for the tinned ones

Ingredients ( serves 4 )

1 400g tin of chopped tomatoes
or
450g/1lb small cherry, plum or vine-ripened tomatoes

4 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, chopped
a good pinch of dried chilli flakes, or 1 red finger chilli, seeded and finely chopped
2 tbs capers
110g/4oz small black olives, pitted
2 x 50g/2oz cans of anchovy fillets in oil, drained and chopped
1 heaped tsp dried oregano
450g/1lb dried spaghetti
1 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
salt and freshly ground black pepper



Method

Bring a large saucepan of water and 2 tbsp salt to the boil for the pasta. In the books they always say 'bring it to a rolling boil' I've never been quite sure exactly what that is but I do know that it really needs to be boiling hard not just bubbling gently.

For the sauce

If you’re using fresh tomatoes squeeze the tomatoes into the sink to get rid of most of the juice, then cut each one in half.
Cautionary Note: This may require the wearing of an apron as it is quite easy to get the pips and juice all over your shirt ... I even managed to shoot it up my sleeve the other night.

Heat the oil in a pan with the garlic and cook gently for about 1 minute without browning.

Add the chilli, tomatoes, capers, olives, anchovies, oregano and some black pepper and leave to simmer gently for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, add the pasta to the pan of boiling water and cook for about 7 minutes or according to the instructions on the packet.

Drain and tip it into a large warmed serving bowl. Pour over the sauce, add the chopped parsley and toss together well.

Do not be tempted just to leave the sauce on top, you will be marked out as being a British heathen who has no appreciation of what pasta is all about. Every strand of spaghetti should have been in some way touched by the sauce. This also stops the first people to delve in from getting all the sauce...Gannets

Serve straight away, with plenty of red wine, students or indeed Puttane. Whatever floats your boat.
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