Spaghetti Caprese

Possible Cooking Methods:   Stovetop

The easiest of pastas! Because there are so few ingredients in this recipe, it’s really important that those ingredients be the best quality you can find. The tomatoes must be super ripe and in season, so make this pasta at the end of summer when tomatoes and basil are abundant and full of flavor. Use your best extra virgin olive oil – the one you reserve for salads. With the best ingredients, spaghetti caprese is a crowd-pleaser. This recipe cooks so quickly that there’s really no advantage to using a pressure cooker and on top of that, spaghetti won’t fit into most pressure cookers because the majority of them are round. If, however, you want to use a pasta of a different shape in your pressure cooker, cover the pasta with water by at least 2 inches and pressure cook on HIGH for half the time indicated on the pasta package plus 1 minute. Use the quick-release method to release the pressure and follow steps 3 and 4 below.

1 pound dried spaghetti

salt

1 to 2 cups fresh bocconcini mozzarella balls, halved

2 cups chopped ripe tomatoes or halved cherry tomatoes

½ cup torn fresh basil leaves

freshly ground black pepper

¼ to ½ cup extra virgin olive oil

Stovetop Directions

Serves:4

Cooking Time:12 minutes

1.  Bring a large stockpot of water to a boil. Season the water generously with salt. Add the pasta and boil until it is cooked al dente (according to package instructions).

2.  While the pasta is cooking, combine the mozzarella, tomatoes and basil in a large bowl. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add the olive oil.

3.  Scoop out one cup of pasta water and set it aside. Drain the pasta and add the hot pasta to the bowl with the tomatoes and mozzarella. Toss well, season to taste again with salt and pepper, and loosen with some of the reserved pasta water if desired. (As the pasta sits, it will continue to absorb water and might need a little loosening. Keep that in mind if you go back for second helpings.) Serve with a light mixed green salad and piece of crusty baguette.