Spaghetti With Tomato and Basil

This recipe is a variation of a dish we have enjoyed at Scarpetta, a fabulous Italian restaurant on Madison Avenue in New York City.  We're inspired by the tomatoes on our backyard vines (arriving late in the year as we planted late in the spring).

Backyard tomatoes

We start by making tomato sauce:  core the tomatoes with a knife and carve an "X" into the bottom of each.  Boil the tomatoes in water for 15 seconds, transfer to an ice bath to cool, peel, slice lengthwise, and remove the seeds.  For variety, we add some additional canned San Marzano tomatoes with the seeds removed.  We then heat olive oil in a pot, transfer the tomatoes to the pot, add a pinch of salt and chili flakes, and cook for 30 to 45 minutes using a potato masher to help break down the tomatoes.

While the tomatoes are cooking, we prepare basil-garlic oil over low heat with 1/4 cup of olive oil, whole garlic cloves, two stems of basil with the leaves, and a pinch of red chili flakes.  We removed this mixture from the heat when the garlic is lightly browned (about 25 minutes), strain the oil, and combine it with the tomato mixture.

Tomato sauce

We cook spaghetti to just shy of al dente, add the pasta to the sauce along with a bit of pasta water, and finish cooking, with the sauce lightly coating the pasta.  We then remove the pot from the heat and add chiffonade-cut basil, grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, unsalted butter, and a drizzle of olive oil.  We plate and serve.

Pasta and sauce

Plated

Served for everyone (with salad and wine)