By David Harbilas

In the last post we discussed the well-known diavolo sauce, and while Italian cuisine is sometimes thought of as simple or rustic it is also diverse.

Amatriciana sauce is perhaps not as well known as diavolo, but it showcases the tomato’s affinity for spice in a different way.

The addition of pancetta, the non-smoked, cured bacon, or its cousin, guanciale, lends smoky-salty quality, while also providing a degree of fat that isn’t found in diavolo.

This sauce is traditionally served with bucatini pasta, a hollow, spaghetti-like noodle. It also pairs well with any short, ridged pasta, such as fusilli or penne, and is one of the few tomato sauces that, in my mind, pairs well with wine, especially the deeper-bodied reds produced in northern Italy.

yields about 2 quarts

• 2 quarts of basic tomato sauce
• 1 large yellow onion, finely diced Read the rest of this entry »

By Michelle Fabio

This is a simple pasta dish that comes from a town called Amatrice just outside of Rome, Italy.

Traditionalists will say to make it with just guanciale (cured pig jowl), tomatoes, cheese, and pasta (often bucatini).

What follows, though, is the way we make Amatriciana in my house since even here in southern Italy guanciale isn’t always easy to find. As you’ll see, we also add olive oil, onion, garlic, and parsley, but really no matter which recipe you follow, this is one great, simple, stick-to-your-ribs pasta dish.

And the tomatoes always shine.

Pasta all’Amatriciana

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1 garlic clove, diced Read the rest of this entry »