Easy Puttanesca Sauce is thought to be an Italian dish from World War II era. Puttanesca means ladies of the night. These ladies attracted the soldiers with the aroma of this pasta sauce. It will become one of your favorite pasta sauces also.

Servings: 6
½ cup Castelvetrano olives, pitted and chopped (you may substitute Kalamata olives)
2 tbsp. capers, chopped
2 tbsp. anchovy paste
3 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
½ cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil, chopped
1 – 8 oz. can of San Marzano tomatoes, crushed
¼ cup almonds, sliced
1 cup dry white wine
¼ cup flat leaf parsley, chopped
¼ cup basil leaves, torn
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tsp. lemon zest, finely grated
1 lb. spaghetti
¼ cup parmesan cheese

Heat the olive oil in a large pan. Add olives, capers, anchovy paste, garlic and red pepper and cook over medium heat for about 1 minute. Add the almonds, sun-dried and crushed tomatoes and cook for another 2 minutes. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half. This will take about 8 minutes. In the meantime, prepare your pasta in a large pot of salted water. Cook the pasta until it is al dente. (See How to Cook Pasta Video) Drain the pasta saving 3 cups of the pasta water. Add the pasta water to the sauce cooking for about 3 minutes. Add the pasta to the sauce along with parsley, basil, lemon juice and zest. Serve in bowls and top with parmesan cheese.