Lynne Rossetto Kasper's Cheese-Gilded Linguine with Smoky Tomatoes

Lately I've had one thing (and one thing only) on my iPod - Lynne Rossetto Kasper's "The Splendid Table" podcasts. For an hour each week, Rossetto Kasper talks about one of my favorite subjects - food. The first half is devoted to random food topics (including a regular segment by the wonderful and ebullient Jane and Michael Stern, who talk about road food) and, during the second half, Rossetto Kasper fields questions from viewers. She's funny and knowledgeable and she has a terrific radio voice to boot. It's a warm and cozy voice, the voice of a woman who would be fun to gossip or cook something delicious with. She's also a wonderful cookbook author (check out The Italian Country Table) which is why I signed up for her weekly emails with dinner tips (How to Eat Supper, which you can get here).

This week's recipe featured an easy pasta recipe, Cheese-Guilded Linguine with Smoky Tomatoes. The original recipe features bacon, hence the smoky flavor. I left the bacon out and added a pinch of my favorite new spice, pimenton de la vera (or Spanish smoked paprika). Veggie folks -- you need this paprika. Just a sprinkle adds a hint of smoky, delicious flavor to so many things. It's great with eggs, black beans (definitely black beans!), mashed potatoes ....

I used a little less garlic (3 cloves instead of 5 because, frankly, 5 seems like a lot). Otherwise I stuck to her recipe and I was glad I did! This is a quick but rich-tasting, spicy sauce with a hint of smoky flavor. This despite using canned tomatoes! I found that I didn't need the whole recipe to sauce my pasta, mostly because I like a light coating of sauce instead of a drenching. Leftover sauce could, of course, be used for another round of pasta. Or --
-mixed into eggs for a spicy frittata
-spooned over polenta
-spread on bread and layered with cheese for a panini
-my favorite: thinned slightly with water or vegetable stock and then used to poach a couple of eggs in

The one change I might make next time is to toss some fresh parsley in at the end and to use a mix of pecorino and parmesan cheese. I find that the saltiness of pecorino contrasts well with spicy sauces.


Cheese-Gilded Linguine with Smoky Tomatoes
Adapted from Lynne Rossetto Kasper and Sally Swift (The Splendid Table's How to Eat Supper: Recipes, Stories and Opinions from Public Radio's Award-Winning Food Show)

• 5 quarts salted water in a 6-quart pot
• 3T extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tsp pimenton de la Vera
• 1 medium to large onion, chopped into 1/4-inch dice
• Salt and fresh-ground black pepper (I used a generous amount of freshly ground pepper)
  
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes, or to taste (I used 1/2 tsp)
  
• 5 large garlic cloves, minced
• One 28-ounce can whole tomatoes with their liquid, plus one 14-ounce can, drained
• 1 pound imported linguine
• 1 generous cup fresh-grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for the table

1. Bring the salted water to a boil.

2. Heat 3T olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add onions, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and beginning to brown (5-8 minutes).

3. Add garlic, cook 1 minute, then add tomatoes. Crush the tomatoes as you go, making sure to discard the core. Sprinkle in the pimenton de la Vera. Bring to a simmer and cook until thickened, 10 minutes. Taste for seasoning and then cover while you finish cooking the pasta.

5. Drop the pasta into the boiling water, and cook until it is tender but still a little firm to the bite. Drain, and turn it into a serving bowl. Toss with the 1 cup cheese until it clings to the noodles, then toss with the sauce. [I think there's too much sauce for this recipe. You may want to add half the sauce, toss, then see if you need more sauce.] Serve hot, with additional cheese at the table if desired.