weeknight dinner: oricchiette, cauliflower, chile, garlic, and anchovy, parsley, olive oil (inspired by marcella).
- Put two big ol’ pots of water on the heat and season both well with salt.
- Trim and halve a cauliflower head and simmer it in one of the pots until tender. Drain.
- This would be a good time to drop your oricchiette (about a pound) into the second pot of boiling water.
- Add a lot of olive oil (a lot!) and a mess of chopped garlic to a cold pan, and heat slowly until the garlic is golden, but not browned.
- Add six or so anchovy filets to the pan and transfer the pan onto the the top of the bubbling pasta pot. You’re making an ad hoc double boilder here. Over the gentle heat, mash up the fishies with a wooden spoon until well mashed.
- Put the pan back on the heat. Add the cauliflower and break it up into small pieces with a fork. Mash some of the bits to a paste with the back of that trusty wooden spoon, just for good measure and to make things nice and Italian. Add a thinly sliced small red chili pepper to the sauce, and cook for a bit more. Season.
- Add some pasta water to the sauce. Drain pasta. Toss pasta with sauce and a handful of chopped parsley.
