{"id":293,"date":"2016-12-30T09:00:48","date_gmt":"2016-12-30T16:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/villasentieri.com\/?post_type=recipe&p=293"},"modified":"2026-09-02T10:59:23","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:59:23","slug":"pasta-ascuitta-recipe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/villasentieri.com\/index.php\/2016\/12\/30\/pasta-ascuitta-recipe\/","title":{"rendered":"Pasta Ascuitta (Angel Hair Pasta with Crispy Breadcrumbs)"},"content":{"rendered":"

December 30, 2016<\/span><\/p>\n

Pasta ascuitta is the name given to a whole category of pasta dishes in Italy.\u00a0 It means \u201cdry pasta,\u201d quite literally.\u00a0 In reality, most of them are not really dry in the full sense of that word.\u00a0 The category includes all kinds of pasta with almost any imaginable sauce.\u00a0 Spaghetti and meatballs would be pasta ascuitta to an Italian (though the meatballs would be served as a separate course a discussed previously<\/a>). \u00a0What makes pasta ascuitta \u201cdry\u201d is how it compares to the other category of pasta, “pasta in brodo,” or pasta in broth.<\/p>\n

In contrast to pasta in brodo, pasta with sauce is dry, or “ascuitta.” Remember that in Italy the first course after the antipasto (which literally means before the pasta) is either pasta or soup or rice.\u00a0 So, pasta in brodo is both a soup and a pasta.\u00a0 A classic version in our house is tortellini in chicken broth. With appropriate Italian (not Italian-American) restraint it makes a great first course.\u00a0 There might only be five or six tortellini in each bowl of broth.\u00a0 It takes the edge off one\u2019s hunger without filling one up before whatever comes next.<\/p>\n

Growing up in my family, however, pasta ascuitta meant one and only one thing, the way many general terms come to have a specific meaning in a particular context.\u00a0 Pasta ascuitta, to my family, meant angel hair pasta or spaghettini (not spaghetti), served with an abundant amount of breadcrumbs cooked in olive oil until crispy and flavored with anchovies.\u00a0 Of everything that appeared on the table at Christmas Eve, pasta ascuitta was, and still is, my favorite.<\/p>\n

As children, we called it sawdust spaghetti. I still do, sometimes. \u00a0I was chatting with my cousin Donna Meinecke the morning of Christmas Eve this year.\u00a0 Our families spent most holidays together when we were growing up.\u00a0 When she asked me what I was cooking, the first thing I said was \u201csawdust spaghetti.\u201d\u00a0 Enough said!\u00a0 It was Christmas Eve, after all, and while I decided it was best not to introduce a table-full of unsuspecting guests to a soup of baccala (salted and dried cod) and tomatoes; a second pasta with a tomato sauce and squid tentacles; and\u00a0stuffed squid, I had<\/em> to serve pasta ascuitta.<\/p>\n

If you were counting, you would have figured out that the first course of our family Christmas Eve dinner had two pastas and one soup.\u00a0 This, of course, was after a massive antipasto and a large platter of steamed mussels but before the second course of breaded and pan-fried fish fillets, the aforementioned stuffed squid, and, in later years when the \u201cno meat\u201d rule in our family was relaxed, bracciole and homemade sausage.<\/p>\n

I truly don\u2019t remember what vegetables were served.\u00a0 I do remember, however, that there was a huge platter of cookies <\/a>for dessert.

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Pasta Ascuitta (Angel Hair Pasta with Crispy Breadcrumbs)<\/h2>\n
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The genius of this dish, made from very humble ingredients, is the crunch of the salty breadcrumbs in contrast to the chew of the pasta. Even if you think you don\u2019t like anchovies, give this dish a try. There is something irresistible about the salty, crunchy breadcrumbs packed with umami. If you\u2019re still not convinced, try using half the amount of anchovies. I promise you, the next time you make this dish, you\u2019ll follow the suggested amount. \r\n\r\nThis may sound like a lot of oil but remember, it's the only \"sauce\" in the dish. It works out to about 2-3 tablespoons per serving.\r\n\r\nA food processor renders the job of making the breadcrumbs a breeze. Do not use packaged breadcrumbs. It is essential that they be large and soft, but made from bread that is a couple of days old for the proper texture. It is best to use bread that was baked in a pan rather than free-form as the ratio of soft, inner white crumb to crust will be greater. Many supermarkets carry a hearty artisan-style sliced sandwich bread if you don't have a good Italian bakery nearby and don't want to make your own. You want a dense crumb which this type of bread has. It will work just fine using the food processor method below.<\/div>\n
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Prep Time <\/span>20 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Cook Time <\/span>40 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Total Time <\/span>2 days<\/span><\/span> d<\/span> 1 hour<\/span><\/span> hr<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
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Servings: <\/span>6<\/span> people<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Ingredients
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