Pasta Pie Alla Puttanesca

Pasta Pie Alla Puttanesca

The idea for this decadent stack of deliciousness came from an idea I saw on a pinterest post, some months ago.  I believe it originally came from something by Martha Steward.  I have since made it several times and put my own little twists to the recipe, in what I hope is added perfection.  It is very rich, so take a small slice to start off with.  I have also made this with plain tomato sauce and it tastes like Lasagne.  Either way (this recipe or plain sauce), experiment I think you will really enjoy it.  This holds well for reheating and packs for a lunch.  To reheat: place a few drops of water in a microwave container, cover and microwave for about 4 minutes on high.

Grind your own meat

Prep:

You’ll need a 9 inch Spring Form Pan, a micro plane, some basic measuring tools and a layout of the ingredients (Mise-en-place) I like to grind my own meat, because I then know what is in it.  It helps if you have a stand mixer with a grinder attachment.  I also buy Whole tomatoes in a can when they are on sale and when the recipe, as this one does, call’s for crushed tomatoes, I just give them a few quick spins with my emersion blender, right in the can. 

(Mise-en-place)

Ingredients:

1 Box (12 ounces) rigatoni

3 Tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 pound ground beef (I grind my own)

3 garlic cloves, minced (use the micro plane)

1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1 can 2oz anchovy fillets, blotted then chopped, or more to taste

1/4 cup chopped pitted kalamata olives

2 tablespoon capers, chopped

1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley

1 can (28 ounces) good quality crushed tomatoes

2 tablespoon tomato paste. ( I buy this in a tube and it saves the waste )

Butter, for pan

Salt to taste (careful the tomatoes, cheese and anchovies are pretty salty already)

1 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

8 ounces coarsely grated mozzarella

Directions:

1.      In a large pot of salted boiling water, cook pasta until slightly underdone.  Use enough water to make sure the pasta doesn't stick together.  When done, rinse in cold water and drain again.  Toss pasta with 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to coat.  Set aside.

2.      Heat 1 Tablespoon olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.  Add ground beef.  Cook, stirring occasionally until browned.  Remove and set aside

Brown the meat, while pasta cooks

3.      Add the last tablespoon of olive oil into the skillet and stir in the garlic. Turn heat to medium-low and cook and stir until the garlic is fragrant and begins to turn a golden color, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in the red pepper flakes, oregano, and anchovies. Cook until anchovies begin to break down, about 2 minutes.

4.      Return the browned meat to the skillet.

5.      Add crushed tomatoes; and tomato paste then simmer until thickened, about 20 minutes.

6.      Stir the Parsley, olives and capers into the sauce.

7.      Toss pasta with Parmesan cheese.  Butter a 9-inch spring form pan.  Tightly pack pasta into pan, standing each piece on end.  Spread meat sauce on top of pasta.

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Stand up the Cheese coated pasta in the pan

8.      Push the meat sauce into the pasta holes filling each one up.  Be sure all the holes are filled.

9.      Place in a 400 degree oven for 15 minutes. 

10.  Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top and bake another 10-15 minutes until cheese is golden.  Remove from oven and let stand for 15 minutes.  Run a knife around the edge to loosen and then un-mold. 

To serve you can cut into wedges and serve with any remaining meat sauce you might have, or use your favorite tomato sauce.  I always have some in the freezer.  You can find a sauce recipe elsewhere in my blog, if you don’t have one already.

Talk about a conversation piece…..Enjoy