Penne with Tomatoes and Balsamic Vinegar

Adapted from Marcella’s Italian Kitchen by Marcella Hazan (Alfred A. Knopf, 1986).

Serves 2

This is not Marcella Hazan’s most famous book, but it is my favorite. She says that “rosemary and balsamic vinegar account for the unusual, effusive fragrance of this sauce.” It is delicious.

For 8 ounces of penne

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 or 3 cloves garlic, sliced very thin
2 sprigs fresh rosemary, about 4 to 6 inches long, chopped
1 400g can Italian peeled plum tomatoes, put through a food mill
Black pepper
2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

Read the recipe all the way through so you understand the timing. You want to finish the pasta in the sauce.

Put the olive oil and garlic into a sauté pan or saucier large enough to hold the sauce and the cooked penne. Add the fresh rosemary.

Cook over medium heat until the garlic just starts to sizzle, being careful it does not burn. Add the tomatoes and continue to cook until the oil separates from the tomatoes. Expect this to take 10 to 15 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Cook the penne in lots of boiling salted water until it is al dente—very firm to the bite. Drain the penne, and transfer it to the pan containing the sauce.

Turn the heat back on to very low, and toss the pasta with the sauce. Cook for about 1 minute.

Turn off the heat again, and make a well in the middle of the pasta. Pour the balsamic vinegar into the well. Pull the pasta over it, and mix for a few seconds until it is well coated. Add some black pepper, and mix again.

Serve at once.