Spaghetti ala puttanesca

One of the best loved recipes in our family- Puttanesca. Pappy (my father) usually just refers to this dish as 'ttanesca because we all know what the word "Pu*a" means in Filipino. But as I was doing my research about this dish, I found out that Puttanesca literally translates to "whore's pasta! Some refer to it as "busy ladies' pasta"  because it's so simple and easy to make, working women can whip it up in a few minutes and they would have a sumptuous  dinner for their family almost instantly. Special thanks to Mama for teaching me how to cook this dish..the tradition lives on! 

3 packs 500 grams San Remo Spaghetti Noodles

1 kg ripe tomatoes (canned whole tomatoes is usually used)

Tomato paste, 3 Tablespoons or more

1 head of garlic, crushed

1 bottle of capers in vinegar, drained

1 can of anchovies in pure olive oil, 56 grams 

1 bottle of pitted olives, coarsely chopped (I used black olives), net wt 330 gms

olive oil, extra virgin, 1 cup or more

salt to taste
1 tablespoon brown sugar
Parmesan cheese or Quick melt cheese
A bunch of fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped (dried leaves can be substituted)

1 Cook Spaghetti Noodles according to package. Set aside.

2 Cut tomatoes in half and remove the seeds. In a medium sized pot, cook the tomatoes with about a cup of water, simmer until soft. Set aside.

3 In a big pan, heat up olive oil and add the anchovies, squish it. This will flavor the oil. Add the garlic next and cook until fragrant (do not brown the garlic). Stir in the capers, olives, tomatoes (newly cooked or the canned option), tomato paste, sugar. Season with salt. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. At this stage you can add your dried basil leaves, about 2-3 tablespoons. 

4 Toss pasta and fresh basil with sauce and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese or Quickmelt cheese. You can also add some chili flakes, as desired.

*I made this for my hubby's birthday party, yield was good enough for about 10-15 people. Feel free to cut recipe to half or even less.