SPAGHETTI DEL CARRETTIERE 

Spaghetti alla Carrettiera in the Sicilian chic version. Have you ever tried this recipe? The paste carrettiera is one of the fastest and tasty Italian cuisine and is one of my favorite dishes, especially when you have little time or when the visit comes home hungry without notice. The Carrettiera is a poor dish, farmer, as the name suggests. 

The story behind the recipe is that it was invented by the carrettieri, cart drivers who more than a century ago would journey from town to town, selling anything and everything citizens might need. Cooking and eating while on the road takes ingenuity, and they would put together easy pastas using shelf-stable pantry ingredients they had tucked into their carts. 

But the more research I did, the more puzzled I became. Different recipes varied so much, I wasn’t sure why they shared the same name. Sometimes fresh tomatoes appeared instead of canned ones, maybe basil instead of parsley, and sometimes instead of cooking the sauce everything was tossed raw with the hot pasta and cooking water. Which one, I wondered, was the real carrettiera? Then I realized there were geographical influences. The fresh sauce versions tended to come from Sicily while the canned tomato ones seemed to center around Rome. What they had in common was the cart driver who had different ingredients in their cart depending on where they traveled. Farther north that meant preserved mushrooms and fish and tomatoes. But perhaps in the south, fresh tomatoes were more abundant. 

Ingredients

1 1/4 pounds (566g) plum tomatoes (about 5 tomatoes)

1/4 cup (60ml) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling if needed

1/4 cup loosely packed, roughly chopped fresh basil leaves

3 medium cloves garlic, finely minced

1 large pinch red pepper flakes

salt

1 pound (450g) dried spaghetti

1/2 cup (1 1/4 ounces; 35g) lightly toasted panko breadcrumbs, divided

Grated Sicilian Pecorino or ricotta salata, for serving (optional)

Directions

Grate tomatoes on largest holes of a box grater into a large heatproof mixing or serving bowl until only the skin remains in your hand; it's okay if some slightly larger pieces of tomatoes and some skin get through, though you can discard the large pieces of skin. Add olive oil, basil, garlic, and red pepper flakes. Stir well and season with salt to taste. Set aside. In a pot of lightly salted boiling water, cook spaghetti, stirring frequently, until al dente. When pasta has almost finished cooking, transfer 1/4 cup (30ml) pasta cooking water to tomato mixture and whisk to form an emulsion. Using tongs, transfer pasta to tomato mixture along with an additional 1/4 cup (60ml) pasta cooking water. Vigorously toss and stir pasta to emulsify sauce and coat noodles. Add half of the breadcrumbs and toss to combine. The pasta should be well coated with creamy, emulsified sauce. If it seems dry, add extra pasta water and olive oil, 1 tablespoon (15ml) at a time, until it reaches the desired consistency. Taste for seasoning. Transfer pasta to warmed plates and sprinkle with remaining breadcrumbs. Top with cheese, if desired. Serve right away.