Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Ingredients:
- 1 pound (450 g) penne (or spaghetti if you prefer)
- 2/3 pound (300 g) peeled, seeded, and chopped plum tomatoes or a drained 1-pound can of tomatoes
- 1 finely chopped medium sized onion
- 1 minced clove of garlic, or more, to taste
- 1/4 pound (100 g) pancetta or (if you can find it) quanciale, diced
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper, or more, to taste
- Salt
- 1 1/4 cups grated pecorino Romano, or, if you find it too sharp, 2/3 cup each of grated Parmigiano and pecorino, mixed
Preparation:
Sauté the onion and the garlic in half the oil, and when the mixture is lightly browned, add the pancetta. Continue cooking the mixture for five more minutes, then add the tomatoes and the pepper. In the meantime, cook the pasta in salted water. Check the seasoning of the sauce, stir the remaining oil into it, pour it over the pasta, and serve the pasta with the cheese on the side.Serve with a white wine from the Colli Albani, such as Fontana di Papa, and follow it with Saltimbocca alla Romana.
A wine? White, from the Colli Albani.
Note: Quanciale is cured pig's jowl, and is more delicately flavored than pancetta. It can be difficult to find, however, and pancetta will work as a substitute.
