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Weeknight Puttanesca Sauce

My son, Roman, absolutely loves puttanesca! I probably make this once a week, always with him in mind! It's simple, quick and delicious. I encourage you to serve it alongside a light salad.
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Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 15 mins

Ingredients
  

  • 5 Cloves Garlic
  • 1 Tbsp Capers
  • 1 2 oz. Can Anchovy fillets
  • 1/3 Cup Kalamata Olives (No pits)
  • 1/2 tsp Chili flakes (less if you don't like spice)
  • 1 28 oz Whole, peeled tomatoes
  • 3-4 Tbsp Olive Oil
  • 1 lb Linguini or your choice of pasta

Instructions
 

  • Chop your garlic cloves quite fine, and set aside.
  • In a pot or a larger saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a pan on low heat.
  • Add the garlic, chili flakes, and capers to the heated oil. It should sizzle lightly, or start to sizzle within a few minutes. Be sure to stir this every few minutes so that you don't burn the garlic or chili flakes.
  • While these cook, roughly chop your olives, and then add them to the mix, still keeping everything on low heat and stirring every couple minutes.
  • Finely chop your anchovy fillets. If you've never used anchovies before, don't be intimidated. Your food will not taste fishy- anchovies just add an extra (amazing!) boost of flavor to the sauce. Once your anchovies are chopped down quite small, add them to the pot and give everything a good stir.
  • Pour the entire can of tomatoes into a food processor or blender, and pulse very quickly, for about a total of 5 seconds. You don't want the tomatoes to turn into puree- puttanesca should be more chunky and less saucy, with larger bits of tomato.
  • Add the tomatoes into the pot, along with the reserved anchovy oil and an extra splash of olive oil. Season with (a little bit) of salt to taste, and a few good shakes of black pepper. Gently stir to incorporate everything, and then allow the sauce to simmer gently for about 10-15 minutes.
  • Meanwhile, boil a pot of water on the stove for your choice of pasta. I prefer linguini or fettuccini, but you can use whatever you'd like. Once the water is boiling, cook until al dente, and strain. Toss gently with olive oil.
  • Serve the pasta with a scoop of puttanesca on top, and garnish with parmesan and fresh parsley.