Summer Tomato Pasta

Sustainability chatter seems to be everywhere lately. Traditional media is jumping on the bandwagon and the lines of communication are opening, bringing sustainability ideas to the forefront of people’s minds. In an attempt to reduce waste and use less energy the cooking community has started experimenting with traditional cooking techniques, with some great results. Harold McGee, American author who writes about the science of food, recently experimented with the amount of water required to cook pasta, and documented in his Curious Cook column in the NY Times.

Now, I went to cooking school, I read cookbooks, blogs and magazines, so this cooking pasta at a rolling boil with plenty of water idea was ingrained. Well, except for small shapes which prepared like a risotto tastes great. I’m all about trying new things, so I gave McGee’s process a try. For long pasta you heat less water than you usually would (I forgot to measure! But I used about 1/2 of what I normally would) to boiling. Run your dried pasta under cold water for a second, just to wet them. Place pasta in boiling water and stir well. You will need to continue to stir throughout cooking to ensure that the strands don’t stick, and that any pasta sticking out of the water has enough time submerged to cook. The pasta cooking liquid turns out to be really tasty, I used it to loosen the sauce.

This cooking method requires more effort, but is quicker than the traditional. And really, how difficult is it to stir your pasta more often if you are stirring the sauce anyway.

I am scared about the end of summer, no more stonefruit, no more long days, no more tomatoes. So I am living life to the full, and making use of all these summer treats. This pasta is just a simple combination, quick to throw together, and screams summer. Make it before it is too late, and test this pasta cooking method out, I think I like it.

Summer Tomato Pasta
Serves 2-3

250g Linguine
4 or 5 medium ripe tomatoes, cubed.
1 spanish onion
3 cloves garlic
3 anchovies
basil leaves
100g ricotta

For Pasta:
Bring less water than you normally would to the boil in a covered saucepan, and lightly salt (you will be using this liquor for the sauce, so don’t overdo it). Run pasta under cold water to dampen, and place in boiling water, stir. Cook for required time stirring every few minutes to ensure pasta is evenly cooked and the strands don’t stick. Meanwhile, make the sauce.

For Sauce:
Cook diced onion in a little olive oil over medium heat, until transparent. Add sliced garlic and anchovies and cook lightly until melted. Add tomatoes and cook lightly, add a few spoonfuls of pasta cooking liquid and a slug of extra virgin olive oil, season with salt and pepper. When the tomatoes have just collapsed, stir through sliced/ripped basil and remove from heat. Stir sauce through cooked pasta, taste and season again, then serve dotted with ricotta.