First, pick your produce....
Lovely ripe tomatoes from the Whaley Family Farm...
The best ones like to hang out toward the bottom of the vine...
Ridiculously cute - and hot - peppers from Poor Girl's urban garden...
The last of my sweet summer basil...
Heirloom tomato heaven!
Next, start preparing your mise en place...
Chop 3 large cloves of garlic...
... and about 1 cup of onions (preferably yellow)...
... and, of course, those fiery little peppers.
Then, blanch the tomatoes...
Start boiling water in a large pot or soup tureen...
Prepare a large bowl or other receptacle with ice water (the more ice, the better!)...
Score the bottoms of each tomato with an "x" shaped cut (this allows the boiling water to penetrate the tomato more easily, facilitating the separation of the skin for easier peeling)...
Using a slotted spoon, gently add the tomatoes into the rapidly boiling water and blanch for no more than 60 seconds...
After 60 seconds, or when the tomato skins begin to separate from the flesh, remove the tomatoes using your slotted spoon and dunk them in the bowl with ice water.
Allow the tomatoes to cool in the ice water for about a minute or so, then move to a separate bowl for the next step.
Peel & seed tomatoes...
Tomatoes are kind little fruits: they will start doing the peeling for you...
(Peeled tomatoes awaiting seeding & chopping)
Slice the tomatoes in half, remove the seeds, and make a glorious, tomato-y mess...
Proudly survey your mise en place...
Chopped tomatoes, peppers, garlic, onions, dried oregano, salt, crushed chile flakes and, of course, red wine. You're ready to start cooking!
Begin cooking the sauce...
Heat a large pot over medium heat. Add the olive oil, garlic and onions...
...followed by the fresh chiles, crushed chile flakes, salt, sugar and oregano...
Next, add the wine...
... and, of course, the tomatoes!
Stir until well combined...
... and simmer over medium heat for 15-20 minutes, or until you have a thick, chunky sauce.
About 10 minutes in, start to cook the penne...
The sauce is pretty awesome on its own, but it's best when paired with some penne pasta...
When pasta is cooked, drain and drizzle generously with olive oil for extra flavor and to prevent it from sticking together.
Finish the sauce...
During the last 5-7 minutes of cooking, add the fresh chopped basil and stir together; check for flavor and adjust accordingly with salt & freshly ground pepper...
Soon afterwards your arrabbiata sauce is done! Thick, rich, spicy, tomato-y perfection!
Serve...
Remove from heat and place in a separate, pretty bowl and stare at the remarkable fruits of your labor...
Serve a generous amount of sauce on a heaping plate of freshly cooked penne and garnish with extra sprigs of fresh basil...
...and enjoy!
'Nuff said.
Project Food Blog #4: From Vine to Table – Penne with Heirloom Tomato Arrabbiata Sauce
Voting for Round 4…
10 Oct 2010
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by Kimberly Morales ⋅ in Project Food Blog, Recipes ⋅ 36 Comments
⋅ Tags: pasta and rice, peppers, Project Food Blog, recipes, spicy, tomatoes
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