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Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Tasty Tuesdays: Shells with Olives & Ricotta Salata



Welcome to Tasty Tuesdays!
I have a really delicious recipe to share with you today.  I made this a few weeks ago for my sister and I and we both loved it.  The combination of flavors is so unusaul - but makes for an amazing, very flavorful combination.  Definitely will be making this one again!  Also, if you aren't an anchovy fan, don't be scared about using them.  They dissolve into the sauce and just leave a nice, salty flavor behind.

A few notes about the recipe:
- I could not find ricotta salata (even at my Italian impots grocery store!) so I substituted feta.  Ricotta salata is similar to feta.
-  I used crushed red pepper flakes instead of a fresh pepper.  1 teaspoon was plenty and gave it a lot of heat.  I would probably cut it back a little the next time I make it.
- I used flat leaf Italian parsley instead of celery leaves.
{ recipe from the November issue of Rachel Ray Magazine.  See it here. }


Ingredients:
 - salt and pepper
- 1 pound medium pasta shells
- 1/3 cup EVOO
- 7 - 8 flat anchovy fillets
- 1 small chile pepper (such as italian cherry or fresno), seeded and finely chopped, or 1 tsp crushedred pepper
- 3-4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
- 3/4 cup mixed pitted green and black olives, chopped
- 1 lemon, zested and juiced
- 2 tablespoons white wine or dry vermouth
- 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley leaves or mixed flat-leaf parsley and celery leaves, chopped
- 1 cup crumbled ricotta salata


1.   Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, add the pasta and cook until al dente. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.

2.  While the pasta is working, in a large skillet, heat the EVOO, 5 to 6 turns of the pan, over medium heat. Add the anchovies and cook, stirring, until melted into the oil. Add the chile and garlic and cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes. Stir in the olives and lemon zest; season with pepper. Pour in the white wine (or vermouth) and stir to deglaze the pan, scraping up the browned bits.

3.  Stir the reserved pasta cooking water, the lemon juice and parsley (or parsley and celery leaves) into the sauce in the skillet. Add the pasta and toss. Top with the cheese.
We had this left over the next day, and it was just as good.

Enjoy!





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1.  Add a link to the post you are linking up back to this post.
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2.  Add the Tasty Tuesday button to the post you are linking up.  You will find the button and code on my sidebar.  Thanks!


13 comments:

  1. Really wonderful looking pasta dish. thank you for the party.

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  2. Thanks for hosting each week! As usual, your pictures are amazing and drool worthy, and as usual, I have linked up something less than healthy ;-)

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  3. Thanks for hosting. Happy to link up again. Love your pasta dish. Would love for you to share on Thursdays Treasures http://fooddonelight.com/thursdays-treasures-week-69/

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  4. Thank you so much for hosting - your pictures are amazing!

    Laura @ The Salty Kitchen

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  5. That pasta salad looks fabulous - I am always looking for a new side dish or quick lunch. Thanks for hosting!

    Linda

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  6. Oh, pasta, my love...you are so beautiful...

    Sorry. I got carried away. ;)

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  7. Your dish looks fantastic! I just noticed you made some changes to the blog. It looks great. How did you make your banner?

    http://chippasunshine.blogspot.com

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  8. That pasta looks fantastic! I love olives and feta in almost anything ;)

    This week I'm sharing a recipe for easy gluten free Asian soup (it takes 15 minutes).

    I'd also like to invite everyone to come by my blog (Poor and Gluten Free) and enter to win a copy of a new Paleo cookbook, Primal Cuisine. All the recipes are gluten free and you don't need to be on the Paleo diet to enjoy it :)

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  9. wow, looks incredible! great photos! can't wait to try it myself.

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  10. oh those look great!! I love shells :)

    xoxo, Amy @ Interpret As You May

    {PS - I'm giving away a Fitness Notebook & would love for you to win!}

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  11. I brought over the Mushroom Stuffed Acorn Squash for your buffet. Lovely party. Thanks for hosting.

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  12. This looks absolutely incredible.

    I just bought a new convection oven so am on the look out for cakes I can bake (we don't normally have ovens in apartments in Thailand, so I've been wanting an oven for a long time -- now I've finally got one, I'm going to make up for my cake deprivation by trying a ton of recipes :)

    Thanks for this. I'll be baking it next week.

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