Be careful what you wish for or you just might get it.

Right before I made this dish I was musing on how out of all the recipes I’ve tried specifically for this site, only one has been labeled a complete and total failure (oh feta dill pie, you were terrible and let’s not speak of you again).  This recipe doesn’t quite make it to ‘failure’ status, but it certainly won’t be receiving the ‘favorite’ tag either.  Since my sister and I have The Shining, we made this within 3 days of each other and both did our spins on it, with mediocre results.  She used capers instead of olives, I used pecorino romano instead of feta and a different pasta shape, yet both results were lackluster.

The idea behind this dish is great.  Like pasta puttanesca, you make a room temperature tomato  sauce (using the best heirloom tomatoes in this case) with some olives, toss hot pasta with it, add some cheese, and dig in.  Since I’ve been battling a horrible head cold and didn’t feel like spending my energy standing in the kitchen for hours, the idea really appealed to me.

The flavor isn’t bad per se, it’s just very subtle and nothing extraordinary.  Something I did notice however while snacking on the cold leftovers late last night was that the flavor intensified and the entire dish was more enjoyable cold, after sitting for a day.  Honestly, if I were to make this again, I would make it, chill it, and serve it the next day as a cold pasta salad.  But hot for an entree?  Probably not again anytime soon.

Campanelle with Heirloom Tomato Sauce

Based on the recipe from CHOW.com

Makes 6-8 servings (I made a half recipe and got 3 servings.)

Be sure to get the best tomatoes, olive oil, basil, etc, for this dish.  Since everything is served raw, the ingredients need to be at their top form to really sing (or in my case, hum).  I used pecorino romano because I love the spiciness and I’m also not a fan of warm feta, which the original recipe called for.

Ingredients

• 2 lbs really ripe heirloom tomatoes (you want them to be really ripe and juicy so you get a good amount of liquid/sauce out of them.)
• ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil (the best you have)
• 1 ½ tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp ground black pepper
• ¼ cup chopped fresh basil
• 1/3 cup chopped, pitted kalamata olives
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 lb campanelle pasta (or any pasta with a good amount of ridges or shape to catch the sauce, like farfalle or orecchiette)
• 1 cup grated pecorino romano cheese

Directions

1. Preferably on a flexible cutting board, chop the tomatoes into a small dice and be sure to save the juice.  Slide everything into a large non-reactive (read: just avoid metal) bowl and then add the olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss everything well and then let sit for at least 30 minutes, or up to 3 hours.  The longer the tomatoes sit, the juicier they get, the more the flavor develops.
2. Once you’re ready (I let mine sit for 2 episodes of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” so.. roughly 90 minutes), toss in the olives, basil, and garlic.  Let it marinate some more while you cook the pasta.
3. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil, then cook your pasta according to directions.  Reserve a cup of the pasta water in case your tomatoes didn’t provide much juice and you need a little help loosening the sauce.
4. Strain the pasta and toss right into the bowl with the sauce.  Toss with the pecorino and add any pasta water if needed.  Eat immediately, or let cool, chill, and eat the next day.

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