Garden Poetry Pasta

La storia di questo piatto

This dish is a whisper from Southern Italy, where sun-cracked terraces overflow with cherry tomatoes and mint grows wild between ancient stones — a recipe born not in kitchens, but in the memory of land itself.

Ingredienti

• 320 g pasta (penne or fusilli)
• 500 g cherry tomatoes
• 150 g white onion
• 100 g carrots
• 20 g fresh mint
• 60 ml extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic
• 10 g salt
• 2 g black pepper
• 2000 ml water for cooking pasta

Preparazione

1. Clean the carrots and onion, dice them finely into approximately 5 mm cubes. Lightly crush the garlic cloves with the side of your knife blade. Rinse the cherry tomatoes and halve them. Strip the mint leaves from the main stems and set aside.
2. In a large skillet, pour the extra virgin olive oil and heat over medium heat for 2 minutes until it becomes fragrant. Add the crushed garlic and sauté for 1-2 minutes until golden and aromatic, being careful not to burn it. Remove the garlic with a slotted spoon.
3. Add the diced onion and carrot to the skillet over medium heat, and cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon, until the onion becomes translucent and the carrots begin to soften. Add the halved tomatoes and cook for another 15-18 minutes over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, until the sauce becomes thick, concentrated, and syrupy. The water should evaporate almost completely and the tomatoes should release all their caramelized sweetness.
4. Bring water to a boil in a large pot with 8 g of salt, then add the pasta and cook according to package directions (usually 9-12 minutes), stirring occasionally. The pasta should be al dente when bitten crosswise.
5. Drain the pasta, reserving about 1 cup (approximately 200 ml) of cooking water. Add the pasta to the skillet with the sauce (which should be at room temperature or cold) off the heat and stir vigorously for 2 minutes, gradually adding some of the cooking water to create a glossy emulsion that coats the pasta evenly. Adjust salt and pepper. Add the freshly chopped mint, stirring gently.