This is a very easy recipe, really for everyday use 🙂

The ingredients are simple, easy to find, and the procedure it’s not difficult at all.

It’s a typical recipe from Campania region, and it’s very common also in Lazio region, but through all Italy this recipe is famous.

There are some differences between the usual recipes made in Campania and in Lazio: in Campania they use no anchovies in the recipe and they use oregano (so it’s vegetarian/vegan too), in Lazio they usually use anchovies and parsley. Personally I prefer the second one, the anchovy fillets give a very good taste 🙂

The origin of the recipe is not sure, it seems that in some books of XIXth century there was already a similar recipe, then in the ’30s appeared this recipe called “Maccheroni alla Marinara”, and somehow later it got the actual name and it became famous as “Puttanesca”. But no one knows why of this name, exactly 🙂

Let’s see how to do it! 🙂

INGREDIENTS (2 people):

• 200 g of Spaghetti
• 400 g of ripe tomatoes, or if it’s winter use 300/350 g of a good tomato sauce (I used a sweet cherry tomatoes sauce)
• 8/10 black olives
• 1-2 tablespoons of capers 
• 4 anchovy fillets (possibly the ones kept in salt, otherwise also the ones kept in olive oil are ok)
• 1 chili (or more if you like it more spicy)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• parsley
• extra virgin olive oil

1. First of all take a pan an heat the oil. Once the oil is hot enough, smash the cloves of garlic with the flat side of the knife and add it to the oil, with chili too.
2. When the garlic gets some color remove it, then add the anchovy fillets (cut into pieces), the tomatoes (or the tomato sauce), the olives (cut into slices) and the capers, and let it simmer for about 10-15 minutes from now, at medium/low heat.
3. During the same time put the spaghetti to cook into a pot of salted boiling water.
4. When the pasta is ready (about 1 minute less than the time written on the package), drain it and add it to the pan with the sauce, and let it cook at medium heat for 1-2 minutes more. Add also a ladle of boiling water, if needed.
5. Meanwhile chop also the parsley and add it to the pasta, mix well together and serve it in the dish.
6. Add a last drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and enjoy 🙂