Linguine Puttanesca with a side of Summer Squash

A friend of mine (who shall remain nameless) told me about this sauce--"Puttanesca". What got me was that it had olives in it (yum!) and capers (double yum!). In my efforts to try new ingredients and new dishes, I ventured to make this... puttanesca sauce. I even did a little research before I decided which recipe to go with... Below is the recipe for Puttanesca sauce from the America's Test Kitchen Cookbook (ATK). I also found a recipe that had scallops (lightly breaded) accompanying the pasta, but I would just add chicken or italian sausage. This time, I decided to go straight with the recipe. [Sadly, I bought the italian sausage but did not end up using it.]

Linguine Puttanesca Sauce
makes 4 cups, enough to sauce 1 pound of pasta

3 tbsp olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
4 tsp minced anchovy fillets (about 8 fillets)
1 tsp red pepper flakes
3 (14.5 oz.) cans diced tomatoes
1/2 cup Kalamata olives, pitted an chopped medium (or any black olive)
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley
3 tbsp capers, rinsed Salt and Pepper

1. Cook the oil, garlic, anchovies, and red pepper flakes in a medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until the garlic is fragrant but not browned (about 2 minutes.)
2. Stir in tomatoes with their juice and simmer until thickened slightly, 15 to 20 minutes.
3. Stir in the olives, parsley, and capers. Season with salt and pepper to taste. When tossing the sauce with pasta, add some of the pasta cooking water as needed to loosen the consistency of the sauce.

Provencal-Style Summer Squash Casserole

3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium red onion, halved and sliced thin
pinch red pepper flakes
Salt
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup white wine
1/2 cup low-sodium chicken broth
1 tsp minced fresh thyme or 1/4 tsp dried
Pepper
2 medium summer squash (1 lb.), ends removed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 medium zucchini (1 lb.), ends removed and sliced 1/4 inch thick

1. Adjust the oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat 2 tbsps of the oil in a 12-inch skillet over med-high heat until shimmering. Add the onion, pepper flakes, and 1/2 tsp salt. Cook until the onion is well browned around the edges, about 10 minutes. Spread the onions evenly over the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish.
2. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil and the garlic to the skillet and cook over medium heat until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir int he wine, broth and thyme, scraping the bottom of the pan to loosen any browned bits. Season with salt and pepper to taste and set aside.
3. Shingle the squash and zucchini over the onion. Pour the broth mixture evenly over the top. Bake until the squash has softened and is just beginning to brown, about 45 minutes.

This was a new way for me to do squash. I was flipping through my ATK Cookbook and I came across this recipe for "squash casserole" they call it. I have a sneaking suspicion that my uncle used to (maybe still does)... man, it turned out good. I got a yummy bottle of Jacob's Creek Chardonnay Pinot Noir (don't ask me how it could be both). But... couple that with some squash and YOU'RE ALL SET.