Cookbook-200623-Final-Reduced | Page 31

Salsa Strombolana
Ingredients
12-ounce can of Italian whole peeled tomatoes
5 ounces canned sliced black olives
1 medium yellow onion
1 clove of garlic
Pepperoncino (chili pepper flakes; as much as you like)
Capers under salt (about 15-20 capers if they are large)
Oregano (dry; flakes; as much as you like)
Pasta (e.g. penne)
Olive oil
MAIN DISH / VEGETARIAN
Contributed by Lucia-Maria Vaina
Professor, Boston University, Biomedical Engineering & Graduate Program in Neuroscience
Co-director, Neurology of Vision Laboratory. Neurology Department, MGH &
MEG Center, Martinos Center for Biomedical imaging (Research Scientist)
Servings: 4
Method
1. Chop the onions and sauté them in olive oil, add a clove of garlic, the sliced
olives, capers under salt (rinse them well, so the salt goes away), and
pepperoncino.
2. After about 10 minutes, add the tomatoes (canned whole peeled) and
oregano (usually I use the dry oregano). And salt if you like (it is usually
not needed). Cook everything together for about 20 minutes.
3. Boil the pasta (short thick pasta that absorbs the sauce is better).
Remember to use coarse salt for the pasta water and add it when the water
boils.
I learnt this recipe when I visited the island of Stromboli, which is in the Tyrrhenian Sea just north of
Sicily. The Stromboli volcano on top of this very small island erupts spectacularly every 15 minutes!!
Signora Caterina, the owner of Villaggio Sromboli, where I stayed, and I were chatting about food; she
was also the cook and made me taste this amazing pasta! This is why I call it Salsa Strombolana.
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