Pasta puttanesca can mean many things - a bonding moment for a family enduring unspeakable tragedy. A peace offering to a conniving, distant relative and his wannabe-drama-nerd-cronies. A "prostitute pasta", its literal translation from Italian to English. Whatever pasta puttanesca means to you, it's basically a bunch of anchovies and olives mashed into spaghetti, and it tastes better than it sounds.

Ingredients

• 7 ½ ounces Semolina flour, separated
• 2 ½ ounces all purpose flour
• 2.3 ounces eggs (remove white as needed)
• Kosher salt
• 2 ounces water
• 4 ounces black olives, pitted
• 2 Tbsp capers
• 1 can anchovies
• ½ cup minced parsley
• 3-4 Tbsp olive oil
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 1 can of whole San Marzano tomatoes
• Parmesan cheese (optional)

Method

1. Start by mixing 2 ½ ounces each of Semolina flour and all purpose flour with a little kosher salt and 2.3 ounces of eggs. Whisk with a fork until roughly combined. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until tacky (not sticky). Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge for 30 minutes.
2. For the semolina pasta dough, combine 5 ounces of flour with 2 ounces of water. Whisk until roughly combined. Turn out onto a floured work surface and knead until tacky. Cover with plastic wrap and place in fridge for 30 minutes.
3. Remove pasta from fridge. Cut in half, and place on a lightly floured work surface. Use a rolling pin to roll out your dough and then run it through on the widest setting on your pasta roller. Laminate the dough by folding into thirds and rolling out again. Do this 3 times. One notch at a time, roll your dough thinner and thinner until you get to about number 3, then put through the pasta cutter.
4. Place pasta on a flour-dusted baking sheet in a little nest. Cover in plastic wrap and place in the fridge. Do this process for both pasta doughs.
5. Next, pit and chop 4 ounces of olives, finely chop 2 Tbsp of capers, and 1 can of anchovies. Make sure you also have about ½ cup of minced parsley. Also lightly chop 5-7 cloves of garlic.
6. Sauté the garlic in 3-4 Tbsp of olive oil for about 1 minute on medium-high heat. Add 1 can of whole tomatoes, and while bringing them to a simmer, crush the tomatoes up with a spoon.
7. Once sauce is brought to a simmer, add 2 Tbsp of anchovies, ½ cup of black olives, and 2 Tbsp chopped capers.
8. Stir and then let simmer for 8-9 minutes. When your sauce gets to a point when you can run your spoon across the bottom and see the bottom of the pot, that’s when you kill the heat, and add the chopped parsley.
9. Let the sauce cool slightly while you cook your pasta. Bring some water to a boil and cook your pasta for about 1 minute. Strain, add the noodles back to their pot, and add 2 Tbsp of butter and some black pepper for seasoning.
10. Place pasta in a bowl and add your on top sauce. Garnish with extra parsley.
11. An alternative way of doing this (Babish’s method) is to add some sauce to a sauté pan on a medium heat. Cook your pasta for about 30 seconds and then add it to separated sauce to finish cooking in the sauce. Add 1 Tbsp of butter and give the whole thing a good stir. Place in a bowl, add some extra sauce and maybe some parmesan cheese, serve and enjoy!