Penne al arrabbiata

Ingredients for 2 servings:

• 250 g Penne Rigate
• 300 g cherry tomatoes
• 6 tbsp olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves
• 4 chili peppers
• 3 tbsp tomato paste
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• ½ tsp sugar
• 1 onion(s)
• 5 tbsp parsley, chopped or frozen
• n. B. Hard cheese, grated

Instructions

Working time approx. 20 minutes; Cooking/baking time approx. 30 minutes; Total time approx. 50 minutes

Heat the olive oil moderately in a pan. Add the peeled and split garlic cloves. Adjust the temperature so the cloves don’t overbrown. In the meantime, finely dice the onion and slice the chili peppers. I always leave the seeds in. The number of peppers depends on their spiciness and the desired spiciness of the dish. After about 10 minutes, remove the garlic cloves. Gently sauté the onions and chili peppers for about 10 minutes, but don’t let the onions brown! Then push everything to the side, add the tomato paste, and roast for a few minutes. Mix everything together. Add salt, pepper, and sugar and simmer with the whole cherry tomatoes on low heat for about 30 minutes. The oil should simmer gently. The cherry tomatoes should burst; if they don’t, mash them with a fork. During the 30-minute cooking time, cook the penne according to the package instructions until al dente. After the sauce has been cooking for about 25 minutes, skim off some of the pasta water and add it to the sauce to make it nice and thick. I use about a ladleful. At the end of the cooking time, add the parsley to the sauce and stir. Drain the cooked pasta, reserving some of the water. Add the pasta to the sauce and cook for 2-3 minutes. Add a little more pasta water if necessary. The sauce can be a little oily and should only coat the pasta; the pasta should not be submerged in the sauce. Serve with Italian hard cheese.