Fiorentini with Guanciale, Tomato, and Spicy Pickled Peppers

Name: Fiorentini with Guanciale, Tomato, and Spicy Pickled Peppers
Yield: serves 4
Ingredients: Kosher salt; 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil; 5 ounces guanciale or pancetta, cut into small dice; 8 garlic cloves; 2 cups Passata di Pomodoro (page 25) or tomato sauce; 1 teaspoon sugar; 12 large fresh basil leaves; 12 ounces fiorentini or another artisanal pasta shape, such as maccheroni alla chitarra; 1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh Italian parsley leaves; 1/2 cup Spicy Pickled Peppers (page 204, or jarred), seeded and thinly sliced; 1/4 cup finishing-quality extra-virgin olive oil; Wedge of Parmigiano-Reggiano, for grating

January 26, 2012

Matt got the inspiration for this dish from the Whole Hog Dinner that the restaurant Oliveto, in Oakland, hosts every year for chefs, food professionals, and friends from all over the world. One year they served pasta with cured pork, pickled peppers, and tomato sauce, which was so good that when we got back to Los Angeles, Matt decided to make his own version. Fiorentini means “Florentine,” but here refers to a twisted short pasta shape made by Setar, an artisanal pasta producer in Napoli. If you can’t find it, use another dried, artisanally produced pasta in its place, such as maccheroni alla chitarra, a big tube-shaped pasta from Napoli. The tubes collapse when they cook so they’re like empty ravioli.

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