Spaghetti

How to make Mom’s spaghetti. This is less a recipe than a guide because spaghetti americano della Mama is a thing that can accommodate someone’s dislike for green bell peppers, or love of a sauce rich with garlic and butter.

You will need:

1 yellow onion
3 cloves of garlic
1 bell pepper of any shade
1 jar or can of whole or diced tomatoes with the juice
1 tube of tomato paste
1 jar or can of tomato sauce
red wine
olive oil
salt, pepper
a generous pat of butter
red pepper flakes
herbs—in summer go into the garden and snip off some rosemary, oregano, thyme, parsley, and basil; in winter use Italian herbs or Herbs de Provence and a big spoonful of pesto from all of last summer’s basil. (I make it and freeze it in ice cube trays. Magic.)

Peel and dice the onion, garlic, and bell pepper. Season with salt. Not too much!

Saute in olive oil until soft and pour in wine to deglaze the pan. Pour in the tomato products and be sure you cut the stem ends off the tomatoes. No one likes finding that in their sauce. Add the ‘hard’ herbs—dried or the thyme, rosemary, and oregano, and the red pepper flakes, just a little bit. Stir well, season to taste with salt and pepper, put a lid on it and turn the heat down to very low. Let it simmer, stirring sometimes, for an hour or longer. Add the pat of butter and stir it in. Taste. Adjust seasonings along the way. I mean, how can you not taste it while it’s cooking? Dip a piece of bread in the sauce and eat that if you want to. This is the blessing of being the cook!

Put a big old pot of water on to boil and add a generous teaspoon or two of salt and some olive oil to the water to season the pasta. It should taste like seawater. Cook your pasta according to package directions and serve with as much or as little sauce as you prefer and some finely, freshly grated Parmesan on top.

Note: if you want meat, add meat. Cook ground meat with the onion, etc, at the beginning, or add precooked meatballs with the butter and heat through. I have a great meatball recipe that I will add here at some point.

Molto Bene!