What do Italians eat on Halloween? Fettuccine–a–fraid–o
Ready in 1 hour
Serves 4 people
Ingredients
- 1 small yellow onions
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 1 pound of pasta
- ½ of a green bell pepper
- 2 cobs of corn
- Italian seasoning blend:
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried rosemary
- ½ teaspoon dried sage
- ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- ½ tablespoon of calabrian chile oil
- 3 tablespoons of the starch from pasta water
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- 3 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 jar of good-quality pasta sauce
Preparation
- Boil water and salt it with 1 tablespoon of salt. Do this first because it will save you time and you can chop up your veggies while the water is boiling.
- Dice 1 small onion, ½ of a green bell pepper, cut the kernels off the cob of 3 corns and mince 3 cloves of garlic.
- Prepare the spice blend and mix until combined.
- By this time, your water should be boiling. Add the pasta and cook according to the package’s directions. You want the pasta to be cooked slightly firm.
- Strain the pasta and make sure to keep a few tablespoons of the pasta water.
- Take the strained pasta and put in a pot with two tablespoons of olive oil. Not only will this prevent the pasta from sticking, but it will also allow the pasta to marinade to add to the flavor.
- Take a large saucepan and melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of olive oil on medium. Once the butter is melted, put in one piece of onion. If it sizzles, you can put the rest of the onion in.
- Saute the onion for one minute, then add garlic and cook until slightly brown.
- Add the green bell pepper and spice blend and cook for about four minutes.
- After the veggies are fragrant and somewhat cooked, push the veggies to one side of the pan. On the other side, melt the rest of the butter and add the pasta.
- Slowly incorporate the veggies into the pasta.
- Once combined, add calabrian chile oil and some salt and pepper.
- Stir for another two minutes.
- Now add your good-quality pasta sauce and corn and stir for three minutes. Adding the corn last will ensure that it isn’t overcooked and is crunchy.
- Once the pasta sauce is incorporated with the pasta and veggies, add the three tablespoons of pasta water which will add a starchy flavor to the dish.
- Serve hot and enjoy!
Tips
- Calabrian chile is an item you might not have, but I definitely suggest making a trip to the store to buy it because it will add a spicy, flavorful tone to the dish. Plus, you can use it to elevate any pasta dish!
- Good quality sauce is key to this because it is one of the dominating flavors.
- I suggest using penne pasta, but you can also use spaghetti.