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New School Pasta Puttanesca

Serves 4| Ready in 35 mins
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A quintessential Italian pasta dish that ticks all the yumm boxes. Bright and bold flavours combined in a rich tomato sauce with garlic, lemon, capers, olives and anchovies balanced with a hefty amount of parmesan cheese is every pasta lover's dream come true.

New School Pasta Puttanesca

Pasta Puttanesca is a classic, bursting-with-flavour Italian dish that comes together so easily. So why new school you say? Well, this Pasta Puttanesca recipe has the addition of smoked paprika (not typically used in Italian pasta recipes) but brings in a slightly smoky flavour, and gives it a new school kick and for me, only enhances the mediterranean flavours, as well as subbing in Sicilian olives instead of black ones gives it a brighter flavour and breaks all sorts of old school traditions, but dammmmn it’s good.

Pasta Puttanesca is a quick and easy dish to prepare, making it a favourite for busy weeknight dinners. Yum.

For more delicoius pastas that provide a twist on a classic, check out my Posh Pasta Aglio e Olio and Pasta al Limone.

Frequently asked questions
Can I use other pasta types?

Yes, longer pastas work best but you can use any really, I mean if we’re talking new school, why not?

Ingredients and substitutions

Dried spaghetti, cherry tomatoes, crushed tomatoes lemon, olives, capers, garlic, salt, pepper, spices, olive oil and parmesan cheese
Dried Spaghetti
You could also use bucatini or linguine
Garlic
Part of the flavour base
Cherry tomatoes and canned crushed tomatoes
The combination of fresh and canned gives a lovely flavor and texture variance
Chilli flakes
To heat things up
Baby capers
A salty citrus burst
Anchovies
Good quality, it makes a difference
Smoked paprika
The new school twist, adds smokey goodness
Sea salt and pepper
For seasoning
Parsley
For freshness
Lemon
Zest and juice to add in citrus fragrance
Parmesan cheese
Use a good quality parmesan
Olives
I have used Sicilian olives, but you can also use the standard black olives

How to make it - step by step!

Spaghetti cooking
1. Cook the Spaghetti

Cook spaghetti to packet instructions, (undercooking by about 3 minutes) reserve ⅓ cup of pasta water.

Frying garlic in a pan
2. Saute the Garlic

Meanwhile, in a large pan, sauté the garlic in 1 tbsp of olive oil on a medium heat for about 2 minutes.

Tomatoes, capers and anchovies
3. Add the flavour base

Add in cherry tomatoes, cook for about 2 minutes then add the chilli flakes, anchovies, capers, smoked paprika and canned tomato.

Olives added to tomato sauce
4. Add Lemon Juice, Parmesan, and Olives

Add in lemon juice, grated parmesan and olives. Taste and season, you should have a good balance of saltiness and tang.

Spaghetti added to cherry tomatoes
5. Combine Spaghetti and Sauce

Add your cooked spaghetti to the sauce with about 1/3 cup pasta water, let bubble for a couple of minutes, until pasta is perfectly cooked.

Parsley added to spaghetti
6. Serve and garnish

Serve on to plates, drizzle with a little olive oil, top with lemon zest, parsley, extra parmesan and chilli flakes for an extra kick.

Watch the how to video

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New School Pasta Puttanesca

Cook Time
25 mins
Prep Time
10 mins
Serves
4
A quintessential Italian pasta dish that ticks all the yumm boxes. Bright and bold flavours combined in a rich tomato sauce with garlic, lemon, capers, olives and anchovies balanced with a hefty amount of parmesan cheese is every pasta lover's dream come true.
  • 400g dried Spaghetti
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 5 cloves garlic, finely diced
  • 200g mixed cherry tomatoes
  • 1 x 400g can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 tsp chilli flakes plus extra to serve
  • 50g baby capers
  • 5 good quality anchovies, finely diced
  • 1/2 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 1/4 tsp of sea salt
  • 1/4 of cracked pepper
  • 1/2 cup parsley, chopped
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup grated parmesan plus extra to serve
  • 1/2 cup Sicilian olives
Category - Dinner
Cuisine - Italian inspired
Skill Level - Super easy
Other categories -
Dinner, Pasta, Vegetarian, Weeknight meals
Nutritional information
Calories 504.5 kcal25%
Carbohydrates 91.0 g30%
Sodium 953.5 mg41%
Magnesium 93.0 mg23%
Protein 17.6 g35%
Sugar 9.0 g10%
Calcium 106.0 mg11%
Vitamin A 37%
Fat 8.7 g13%
Fiber 7.5 g30%
Iron 4.3 mg24%
Vitamin C 43%

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