Spaghetti alla Puttanesca

Ilaria was also a member of the book club to which I was privileged to belong, courtesy of her invite, so thanks to her I was introduced to a number of Italian classics, with a particular emphasis on the War years, given the importance of Facism to their history, which began as something which united Italians and ended up, via the association with Nazi Germany, as anti-Semitic in the extreme. So books from and about the concentration camps, the role of facism and communism in shaping modern-day Italy and the milieu of the era, all mostly written by Jewish Italians were presented to us to read; with Ilaria arguing cogently that its Jewish heritage is as central to Italy as its Catholic past, which is of course the predominant touristy image we have of the country. For those who are interested in classic Italian literature, I can therefore heartily recommend the following books:

Christ Stopped at Eboli by Carlos Levi, which is a memoir of his year of exile in a poor town in the poorest region of Italy (the south), where he was sent for his anti-facist views. A fascinating document.

If this is a man and The Truce, by Primo Levi. The first tells of his internment as a Jew in Fossoli and then Auschwitz and the second of his long return from Auschwitz. His is a remarkable story of fortitude and survival; of learning to live but never forget.

Invisible Cities by Italo Calvino. Calvino was also anti-facist, became a communist and then resigned from the party after the invasion of Hungry. His writing defies easy description, often referred to as a fabulist, magical realist, post-modern or simply modern. This book ostensibly is a record of Marco Polo telling Kublai Khan about the many cities he has been to, all of which turn out to be multiple Venices of the imaginings.

The Garden of the Finzi-Continis by Giorgio Bassani. Set in Ferrara, during the years between Mussolini’s rise to power and the start of WWII, it is a story of young people in a small town who are Jewish and who are increasingly hemmed in by anti-Semetic laws. The looming tragedy that is off-stage is that the family of the Finzi-Continis all die in the death camps but the story itself is delicate and personal.

Italian Cuisine celebrates the pleasure of eating (and living) enhanced by preserving the individual characteristic of the ingredients (as of its 'individualistic' people!);

The ingredients have, in fact, to harmonize but not to be confused with the others: the aim is a wonderful "concert of flavours" not its cacophony...

Stress is also on color, bright and inviting, keeping each element unmistakably separate;

Ingredients have to be good by themselves.

This excellence is exemplified in the word "recipe" derived from the latin imperative "to procure" the best and freshest. It starts from your selection made at the market where 'Cooking Italian' really begins!

By understanding these characteristics you will be able to understand better the true Italian Culture & Spirit!

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Comfort Food that is simply prepared and associated with a sense of home and contentment (and to me, with a strong element of nostalgia!).

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RECIPES FROM MY WONDERFUL ROME!

Spaghetti alla Puttanesca


- 2 anchovies (optional)
- 2/3 cloves of garlic, smashed
- 1 TBS capers
- 5 TBS extra-virgin olive oil
- 100 grms olives, green and black (I used the kolossal variety), pitted
- 2 chili peppers
- 500 grms tomatoes, fresh or canned ITALIAN

(if using fresh tomatoes, blanch them for one minute, then peel and squeeze them and discard the extra water)
- 2 TBS parsley, chopped finely
- 500 grms ITALIAN spaghetti or linguine

- On a medium high flame, briefly saute the chillis and the garlic in the oil (this step by itself is already your typical condiment for spaghetti al dente called "Aglio, Olio e Peperoncino"!);
- add the anchovies - if used, the capers and chopped olives;
- after a couple of minutes, add your (Italian) tomatoes;
- cook lively and uncovered for about 15 minutes;
- drain your spaghetti slightly undercooked (two minutes less than the suggested cooking time);
- saute the pasta in the pan with the sauce for a minute more, if needed add a little bit of the reserved cooking water of the pasta for thinning the sauce;
- add the chopped parsley for a fresh accent to this dish before serving.

The same procedure but omitting the olives, capers and anchovies will give you the "Sciue'-Sciue'" (meaning "Quick-Quick" in Naples) sauce for your pasta, a quintessential comfort-food memory of my beloved uncle, the true chef in my family!

Buon Appetito!