Delicious Penne

Today you are going to learn how to make Penne All'Incazzata which is Angry Pasta in Italian. Unless you are very weak when it comes to spicy stuff (like me) you'll just make regular penne pasta. This dish will be found page 37 of Domenica Marchetti's book 'The glorious PASTA of Italy.'

INGREDIENTS

• 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
• 1 table spoon of extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 oz/115 G of Pancetta, Diced
• Unless you're like me and can't find this in the meat section just get 4 oz. of Naturally Dry Aged Prociutto: Cubetti found in Fred Myers
• 2 cloves of garlic, lightly crushed
• This one is if you have a spicy personality or not
• 2 or more fresh chili peppers, minced
• or a generous pinch of pepper flakes
• or 1 green pepper
• 1 14.5 OZ/411 G can  of ready-cut tomatoes diced and peeled
• 1 LB/455 G Dried Penne
• 1 Tablespoon of finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 4 OZ/ 115 G Pecorino Romano Cheese freshly grated

Time for the Fun

Step 1: Grab a pot and fill it up half way. Put it on the stove with medium heat and add about a teaspoon or two of salt. Put the lid on and continue to the next step. You want your water to look like this in about 5-10 minutes

Step 2: While the water is on the stove start cutting the green pepper (or mincing the chilly pepper) and mincing the garlic cloves. Also open the can of diced tomatoes, mince the parsley, and separate 3 lb of the cheese from the 4 lb. Keep them on the side and we'll come back to them



Step 3: On another stove top grab a large frying pan and warm the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Once the butter is melted and begins to sizzle poor in the diced meat and saute for about 5 minutes or until the meat, according to the book, "has rendered  some of its fat and is slightly crisp. With a spoon transfer the meat to a plate.

 

Step 4: Add the garlic and peppers of choice to the same frying pan and saute for about 5 minutes or until the garlic releases its fragrance. Take out as much garlic as you can and throw it away or do what you want with it.

 

Step 5: Then pour in the tomatoes, raising the heat to medium high, and stirring the tomatoes with the peppers. After a couple minutes bring it to a simmer and stir occasionally for 15-20 minutes or until it's thick

Step 6: While the sauce is simmerin' and cookin' check the pot and it should be boiling by now. If it is, pour in the penne with the lid off. After 5 minutes check if it's ready by grabbing a spoon and eating one of the penne's. If it's not cooked check it again after 2 minutes; if it is drain the water keeping about 1 cup of it. Set the stove to very low and wait for the sauce to be ready

Step 7: Once the sauce is ready, transfer the pasta to the frying pan gently tossing and combining thoroughly. Then stir in the meat that was set aside, the parsley, the 3 lb of cheese, and a little bit of the water to loosen the sauce. Mix it all together and you know that it's the best of all foods.

   

Step 8: Then serve with a little bit of cheese on top and enjoy!



The pun of the post: If I had a penne for every time I made penne I'd have 1 penne

This penne pasta was an easy and fun dish to make. If you're just making dinner for your family and want to impress them with your skills of Italy this is perfect because it is very doable for anyone who is just starting out in cooking. Don't be fooled by the many steps, it's just cutting, mixing, and boiling. so have fun with it. Add your own spices, make it as spicy or as salty as you want. As she says in the book, "use as much chili pepper as your lips can take," (Marchetti 37) This is just the  basis so don't let it stop you from letting your imagination run wild.

Question: How do you know what is enough spices in the food you're cooking?
Marchetti, Domenica. The Glorious Pasta of Italy. San Francisco, CA: Chronicle, 2011. Print.