Recipe: Strega Nona’s Spaghetti

As a little kid, I loved reading picture books with my parents (truth be told, I still love a good picture book). One of my favourites was a book called Strega Nona, about a kindly village witch, her magical pasta cauldron, and the mischief that happens when the pasta magic is activated by Strega Nona’s helper, Big Anthony (spoiler: if you think you’ve ever made way too much pasta, Big Anthony has you beat by miles)!

For this week’s blog, I wanted to take a crack at a spaghetti recipe resembling what might have been cooked up by a magical pasta pot. So, without further ado, here is my take on Strega Nona’s pasta.

Ingredients:

• 1 pound spaghetti
• 2 cups plain breadcrumbs (I make my own but Panko would be the next best thing)
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1-2 teaspoons red chili flakes (adjust for your spice preferences)
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Parmesan cheese (optional)
• Parsley, minced (optional)

Instructions:

1. Cook spaghetti according to package directions.
2. While the spaghetti cooks, heat three tablespoons of the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Once hot, add garlic and chili flakes and saute until fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute.
3. Add breadcrumbs and stir to mix in olive oil, garlic, and chili flakes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
4. Once the breadcrumbs are warm and crispy, place into a bowl and set aside.
5. When the pasta has finished cooking and been drained, heat the remaining tablespoon of oil in the frying pan and add the pasta to it, tossing to coat. Saute for a minute or two until most of the extra pasta cooking liquid has evaporated then remove from heat.
6. Sprinkle a healthy heap of your flavoured breadcrumbs over top of the pasta (reserving the rest for garnish) and toss to evenly distribute them. Serve with additional breadcrumbs, minced parsley, and grated parmesan, as desired.

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For all you kids’ book lovers out there, all books for kids and teens from Mirror World Publishing are 25% off for the month of June! Just use code SUMMERSALE in checkout or use our magical link (much like a magical cauldron) here to automatically apply the discount to your cart!

-Rhiannon