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Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce and My Italian Dinner

September 3, 2016 by Mary 17 Comments

We are still basking in the memories of our European trip and this post is about the Italian part. Our friends in Italy are so generous. They are generous with their time, their attention and their gifts. Tiziana so graciously took me to buy the best cheeses in all of Italy – award-winning Pecorino’s in many different “flavors.” I bought two different kinds (now I wish I would have bought more…) plus some Parmigiano. I bought 3 large wedges but ended up giving two away to each of my kids. Why was I feeling so generous at that moment???

Tiziana was so gracious in equipping me with an insulated bag with a cold pack plus another suitcase that I could put all the cheeses in and check the bag for flying. And did I tell you about the olive oil? Every guest at the wedding got this can of olive oil pressed from olives from the olive trees in their yard!Olive oil from a private estate.

This is THE BEST olive oil – so fruity, so pure, so DELICIOUS!!  I wish to never run out of this but that is really wishful thinking since I only have two cans.

On Sunday night of that amazing weekend in Italy, if you can imagine, Andrea and Tiziana had yet another dinner party. These are the parents of the bride who held a party in their home for 50 people on Friday night, hosted the wedding on Saturday, which started at 5 pm and ended at 5:30 am and then had about 20 people for dinner on Sunday night, with Tiziana making yet another pasta dish – pici with her mother’s pomarola sauce – so delicious!! Not yet knowing how to make that, I came home and immediately made this pasta with fresh tomato sauce – twice already!

Super quick and easy Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce in a white bowl.

Super quick and easy Pasta with Fresh Tomato Sauce.

My Italian Dinner - bowl of fresh sunny gold pasta sauce

You can also use sunny gold tomatoes – super sweet and delicious.

My Italian dinner - sunny gold fresh sauceThe tomatoes are so abundant, fresh and flavorful this time of year, perfect to make this dish. It’s so darn easy and quick too. I didn’t have any basil in the city so I substituted sorrel in the first picture.

Parsley would have worked too – the little bit of green is nice.

Here is this very simple recipe to make a perfect and satisfying meatless meal:

PASTA WITH FRESH TOMATO SAUCE – serves 6 as a main course

1 lb. dried pasta – I used spaghetti
Coarse sea salt or Kosher salt to salt the pasta water

SAUCE:
2 lbs. fresh tomatoes – preferably heirloom or sunny gold, washed, dried, cored and chopped
¼ cup of olive oil
1 large clove of garlic, grated
Salt to taste – preferably French Grey
Black pepper – fresh ground to taste
Pinch of red chili flakes

Torn basil leaves or sorrel or flat leaf parsley for garnish

Combine all ingredients for the sauce in a large shallow bowl.

Cook the pasta in ample boiling water, salted to taste like the ocean. Start testing the pasta 2 minutes before the lesser time on the instructions. You must have the pasta al dente. No one likes overcooked pasta. Before draining, save some pasta water.

Immediately place drained pasta in the bowl with the sauce ingredients, adding 1 – 2 Tbs. of pasta water, to make the sauce adhere to the pasta better and toss all to combine. Garnish with torn basil leaves or sorrel or parsley. Serve immediately.

That same Sunday night in Italy, Cristina, Tiziana’s best friend and my sweet Prada buddy (she took me to the Prada store) came to dinner with a jar of her favorite Tuscan meat sauce – she said Tiziana knows cheese but she knows meat!! She brought the best bresaola I have ever tasted. And she brought her favorite Tuscan cookbook for me that is thankfully in English and Italian! I don’t know how she even found the time to go get these gifts in between the Prada trip and dinner that night. Everybody was so SWEET!! Cristina asked if I had room in my suitcase. Heck I’d find room come hell or highwater.

Tuscan cookbook.

Just take a look at this book – beautiful and I want to make about 99.9% of the recipes…

Tuscan cookbook open to bean soup recipe.

I cannot wait for the weather to get a little cooler to make this soup!

Tuscan cookbook open to Pici pasta recipe.

This pasta dish sounds amazing too!!! Don’t worry, I will share!

And how sweet this is because every time I see the book, read or use a recipe, I think of Cristina and Tiziana and our amazing time in Italy. All the wonderful memories come flooding back – the scenes, the conversations, the sunsets, the lavender, the cypress trees, the food, the wine, our four kids all dressed up and bouncing around in an open jeep, hair flying, not caring, and the most beautiful wedding.

We all have been continuing the conversation via email, discussing our kids and recipes. Soon I’ll share with you Tiziana’s mother’s recipe for the Pomarola Sauce. I made it once already last weekend, but not the way Nonna makes hers so I want to make her recipe exactly and share that with you.

But for now, let me share with you a little dinner party we hosted for our good friends, Margaret and Wayne, the first Saturday we were back. My appetizers were the two different kinds of Pecorino along with some bruschetta with truffles that I bought at the airport. Super delish!Bruschetta‎, olives, fresh figs, cashews, and 2 kinds of Pecorino on a wooden board with a glass of white wine.

Then I served my gazpacho soup garnished with avocado.

Four white bowls of pici pasta with a Tuscan meat sauce.Then I made some pici pasta I picked up at the Pisa airport and served it with Cristina’s sauce and OMG – it was sooooo good!! A garnish of basil was all that was needed. Dinner served!!

Fresh garden salad with heirloom tomatoes, radishes and chives.Then I served a salad of greens from my garden – lettuce, sorrel and basil with tomatoes, radishes and chives – tossed with a champagne vinaigrette.  A good light clean palette cleanser,

Strawberry and Rhubarb Crisp just out of the oven

and then we finished up with this strawberry rhubarb crisp with a little vanilla ice cream. 

So don’t “labor” this weekend! Make this pasta with fresh tomato sauce, with LOVE, so super easy, and kick back and relax!

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Filed Under: Dinner, Vegetables Tagged With: easy meals, fresh tomato sauce, Italian, meatless meals, pasta, quick meals, quick pasta, vegetarian

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Comments

  1. Jovina Coughlin says

    September 3, 2016 at 5:32 PM

    Beautiful pasta and a great post.
    Jovina Coughlin recently posted…Snacks for Game WatchingMy Profile

    Reply
  2. Suzanne says

    September 3, 2016 at 6:18 PM

    Every pasta dish is wonderful, the whole meal is a real feast including that delicious crisp. Beautiful post!!

    Reply
  3. Nadia says

    September 4, 2016 at 4:12 AM

    What a wonderful meal!

    Reply
  4. Cristina says

    September 4, 2016 at 9:22 AM

    Maryyyy!!! You moove me! I think about you all the time and I’m so happy I’ ve met you!
    Your dishes are better than italian cookchef’s and I’d be glad to eat them all!

    Reply
    • Mary Frances says

      October 11, 2016 at 11:25 PM

      Cristinaaaa!!! So sorry I’ve been away – Lee and Kate’s wedding left lots of family in town and all too crazy! All good but crazy. So many emotions – I can’t explain.

      I think of YOU all the time too!! Come and visit or maybe we’ll come back to Italy to visit after Zach’s wedding in July.

      I wore my Prada shoes the other day for the first time – and have totally been enjoying the bag, thanks to YOU!

      xoxox, Mary

      Reply
  5. Franco palandra says

    September 4, 2016 at 9:48 AM

    Congrats for the blog. I can see you enjoyed this part of the tuscany. Enjoy the book too.
    Ciao
    Franco palandra

    Reply
  6. Gerlinde/Sunnycovechef says

    September 4, 2016 at 4:22 PM

    What a great meal , it all looks delicious.

    Reply
  7. Liz says

    September 6, 2016 at 7:31 PM

    I love, love pasta with a fresh tomato sauce!!! Hoping to put in a new garden next year that actually produces something besides herbs. I could live off this pasta (but I have a feeling I’ll love your upcoming recipe, too!).
    P.S. I am living vicariously through your travels—what an adventure of a lifetime!

    Reply
  8. John/Kitchen Riffs says

    September 6, 2016 at 8:18 PM

    Although I really like longer-cooked tomato sauces (usually made with canned tomatoes), there’s nothing better than a quickly cooked fresh tomato sauce. This looks wonderful. And that olive oil! Lucky you! 🙂
    John/Kitchen Riffs recently posted…The Paradise Cooler CocktailMy Profile

    Reply
  9. Jasline (Foodie Baker) says

    September 7, 2016 at 3:18 PM

    That bottle of olive oil is exactly the kind of wedding gift I’d love to receive, it’s so wonderful! And 12 hours of dinner party?! That’s really long – I’ll need lots of wine to keep the night going 😉 Tomato season is unfortunately ending here, I hope I can still grab some good ones to make this pasta, it looks so simple but so good!
    Jasline (Foodie Baker) recently posted…Day 18/19 Iceland: Ísafjörður, Arctic Fox Centre, Litlibær, HvítanesMy Profile

    Reply
  10. Summer says

    September 7, 2016 at 3:54 PM

    The pasta looks so simple, colourful and yummy ♥

    summerdaisycottage.blogspot.com

    Reply
  11. Bec @ Cook Love Eat says

    September 7, 2016 at 11:48 PM

    I love all the photos with this article. Pasta is my daughter’s favorite meal – she will be thrilled with your ideas. Thank you!
    Bec @ Cook Love Eat recently posted…Caring For Quality Kitchen Knife SetsMy Profile

    Reply
  12. sippitysup says

    September 11, 2016 at 6:20 PM

    My kind of meal. Fresh tomato sauces are a great way to end summer. GREG
    sippitysup recently posted…By: giseleMy Profile

    Reply
  13. Ashley@CookNourishBliss says

    September 13, 2016 at 3:25 PM

    It sounds like you had an amazing trip! Italy is one of those places that I am dying to visit!

    Reply
  14. Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary says

    September 21, 2016 at 3:40 PM

    Great olive oil makes all the difference in the world right?! Your Italian dinner looks AMAZING! And that pasta with fresh tomato sauce is right up my alley!! Cheers!
    Cheyanne @ No Spoon Necessary recently posted…Slow Cooker Chicken Teriyaki Quinoa BowlsMy Profile

    Reply
  15. Sheena @ Noshtastic says

    September 26, 2016 at 2:09 PM

    Your pasta looks amazing and your European trip sounds like it was fabulous!

    Reply
  16. ALOZADE says

    September 26, 2016 at 4:47 PM

    Good posts, beautiful blog.
    Congratulations.
    Welcome to see my creations:
    http://paintdigi.wordpress.com

    Reply

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