This is my go-to pasta dish. We eat an exorbitant amount of pasta here. In our house, there is no fear of carbs and we do not have gluten issues. We don’t run from carbs, we embrace them. To us, a meal without carbs is well, not a meal. Last summer my mother-in-law and grandmother-in-law were here for a month. They cooked for us every night. They planted a garden. Nonna Antonia woke up one morning at 7 a.m. and declared, “Vado fuori a zappare.” Translation: I am going outside to hoe. Out she went in her black skirt (she is in mourning) and purple polyester shirt and asked for a shovel. She was 82 at the time. I was standing there barely awake trying to ingest my caffe’ latte as fast as possible to better comprehend what she was asking. I thought she was kidding. She was serious. Nonna proceeded to go out front and she started to prep the land. That meant, tear apart 1/2 of one section of our front yard Neighbors were whispering to each other. I quickly finished chugging my caffe’ latte and grabbed my camera. I was beginning to wonder if I should stop photographing the event and start digging with her. I offered my assistance and she told me in uncertain terms to back off. Seriously, she didn’t need my help. Nonna Antonia grows every thing and makes every thing from scratch. She has the most amazing olive trees in Calabria. Tears are trickling down my cheeks just thinking of her olives and olive oil. Her husband, Nonno Giuseppe, passed away two years ago. My father-in-law and mother-in-law go to Calabria every year to help take care of the olives. Luckily, we get care packages a few times a year with olives in freeze-dried packages.
10 to 12 fresh plum tomatoes (approximately 2 to 2 1/2 pounds)
1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
salt
freshly chopped basil leaves
Directions
Bring pot of water to a boil. After the water has come to a boil, add salt to the water (about a teaspoon of salt per quart of water). Add spaghetti and cook until al dente. There is nothing worse than mushy pasta. While pasta is boiling, cook your sauce.
Heat olive oil in a saucepan. Saute’ chopped onion until translucent (about 3 minutes).
Add chopped plum tomatoes and cook approximately 5 minutes. Add salt to taste. Add chopped basil and extra virgin olive oil if desired, just before using.
Drain the pasta and add the fresh tomato sauce. You could save some of the pasta water and add to the tomato sauce if it is a little dry.
Sprinkle on some parmesan (we use Parmegiano Reggiano D.O.P. -it is the best!).
BuonAppetito!!
My Little Space says
September 5, 2010 at 7:41 amMy family ate lots of tomatoes especially my kids. We used them mostly in spaghetti and sweet & sour dish! Love it so much. Your spaghetti looks fantastic. Hope you're enjoying your weekend.
Cheers, kristy
Savoring Italy says
September 5, 2010 at 12:42 pmThank you Kristy:)
Kath says
September 5, 2010 at 1:50 pmWhat a beautiful post about your Nonna! And a beautiful photo of your spaghetti al pomodoro. We love simple pasta dishes. When the fresh tomatoes are bad, I like to slow roast good quality canned tomatoes in olive oil to use with pasta.
Savoring Italy says
September 7, 2010 at 1:15 amHi Kath-Thank you for your compliments. :)I like your idea about roasting the canned tomatoes.
Anna says
September 7, 2010 at 4:58 amAwwww, the italian grandmothers, I sure miss mine. She was also fearless, and cooked like an angel. All the time I see a truly italian cooking I feel like packing my luggages and moving, to be surrounded by the olive trees and the beautiful veggies. And I'm definitely not afraid of carbs, as a matter of fact carbs are my natural prozac. LOL, Beautiful pasta.
Megan says
October 19, 2010 at 9:59 pmLove the story! You've given me an idea for the last of this year's tomato crop. YUM!
Erika K says
July 14, 2011 at 3:53 pmOh…this is making me want to go out and hug my tomato plants! 🙂
Too bad the tomatoes themselves are still all green right now. Won't be long and I can use them for this recipe. In the meantime, I'll have to do with my regular grocery store tomatoes. However, we have quite a bit of good looking basil out there right now.
We do cook gluten free in my house, and I'm a carboholic, but we have some pretty good pasta. I can indulge pretty well with a recipe like this! Love the story and picture. I'll need to get my butt out to the garden, today. 🙂
Erika K
Cuisinart 14 cup food processor
Julia says
August 10, 2012 at 12:35 pmDo you peel your tomatoes before making this dish? This is one I grew up with and, since I have fresh tomatoes right now, I might just make this tonight! 🙂