Aglio Olio is a classic Italian dish. It consists of pasta, olive oil, and garlic. Many chefs also add red pepper flakes and cheese. From that base there are approximately 2.3 million variations. In our house pasta aglio olio is always different depending on who's cooking and who is eating.
This week Alex is in CA so Amaya and I immediately decided upon angel hair. This is not one of his favorites and we almost always have it when he is away. Amaya is under the impression that she doesn't like garlic so instead of the sliced garlic I would normally use, I micro-planed the fresh garlic into a generous amount of good olive oil and set it over low heat to gently warm and soften. She loves beans so I added a generous quantity of chick peas and salt to slowly cook with the garlic. When the pasta was ready I added the freshly cooked angel hair, about 1/2 cup of the cooking water, and a generous handful of parmigiano-reggiano.
I garnished the dish with more cheese, and in my case, some freshly ground black pepper. With the addition of a salad, dinner was on the table in about 15 minutes. It was rich and flavorful with a variety of textures and a bright, salty, savory bite.
Years Past
January 15, 2005
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