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SICILIAN PASTA WITH ANCHOVIES AND BREADCRUMBS
Pasta con Alici e Pangrattato
On my last visit to Sicily I {the author} spent much time on the beach of the Saracen Hotel at the Isola delle Femmine. The people there joked that they were the only Arabs who did not fight Israel. It crossed my mind that in looks and in character they had much that was Arab. The Saracens, as the Arabs of 9th century Sicily were called, remained the dominant influence on the cooking of the island. A sprinkling of pine-nuts and currants is one of the main characteristics of this Saracen influence and in this recipe they are combined with a common local ingredient, anchovies, to make a most interesting pasta dish.
Serves 6
500g/1lb spaghetti
3-4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
5-6 tablespoons olive oil
10 anchovy fillets, chopped
Large bunch of parsley, finely chopped
3 tablespoons pinenuts
3 tablespoons currants
4 tablespoons fresh breadcrumbs
Salt
Pepper
Fry the garlic in 3 tablespoons of olive oil till the aroma rises, then add the anchovies and squash them with a wooden spoon so that they practically melt. Add the pepper. Cook the spaghetti until al dente, drain. Meanwhile, gently fry the pinenuts, currants and fresh breadcrumbs in the rest of the oil until the breadcrumbs are brown. Mix pasta well with the anchovy sauce and stir in the parsley. Serve hot, sprinkled with pinenuts, currants and breadcrumbs.
Source: "Mediterranean Cookery" by Claudia Roden