{"id":3735,"date":"2018-01-08T09:00:41","date_gmt":"2018-01-08T16:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/villasentieri.com\/?post_type=recipe&p=3735"},"modified":"2026-09-02T10:58:48","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T17:58:48","slug":"spaghettini-con-acciughe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/villasentieri.com\/index.php\/2018\/01\/08\/spaghettini-con-acciughe\/","title":{"rendered":"Spaghettini con Acciughe (Spaghettini with Anchovies)"},"content":{"rendered":"

January 1, 2018<\/span><\/p>\n

In our house pasta mostly was dressed with a red sauce, specifically my mother\u2019s long-simmered Southern Italian-style sauce.\u00a0 In Western Pennsylvania, we called it \u201csauce\u201d or sometimes \u201cspaghetti sauce\u201d though it was used on much more than spaghetti.\u00a0 Further east, in Philadelphia, New York, and New Jersey the term \u201cgravy\u201d was common, but not where I lived.<\/p>\n

Now I mostly use the Italian word \u201csugo\u201d which is a general term for sauce, though commonly used for a tomato-based sauce.\u00a0 The word rag\u00f9 definitely connotes a tomato-based sauce, specifically with meat. \u00a0It also happens to be a trademarked name, though with a different accent mark on the last letter:\u00a0 Rag\u00fa.<\/p>\n

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I found it interesting that Rag\u00fa was started<\/a> in 1937 in Rochester, New York by Assunta and Giovanni Cantisano, Italian immigrants who sold the sauce from their front porch.\u00a0 In 1969, the company was sold<\/a> to Chesebrough-Pond\u2019s.\u00a0 The brand became the best-selling pasta sauce in the country and ultimately achieved a reported 60% share of the pasta sauce market in the United States.<\/p>\n

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Click HERE<\/a> to join our mailing list and you\u2019ll never miss a recipe again!<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Purchased pasta sauce was something that NEVER<\/strong> <\/em>entered our house!<\/p>\n

When pasta wasn\u2019t served with a red sauce, it was typically served as Pasta \u00e8 Fagioli (Pasta and Beans) and, once a year, on Christmas Eve, with crispy breadcrumbs and anchovies<\/a>.\u00a0 You can find my mother\u2019s recipe for Pasta \u00e8 Fagioli here<\/a> and mine here<\/a>.\u00a0 In the coming months you\u2019ll get my Aunt Margie\u2019s recipe and Louis Evangelista\u2019s recipe for Pasta \u00e8 Fagioli.<\/p>\n

Although not something I grew up with, a simple sauce of anchovies, garlic and olive oil is now a favorite in my household.<\/p>\n

My recipe is adapted from one by G. J. Gillotti (whose family also hails from Calabria) in Our Most Treasured Recipes<\/strong>, published in 1993 by the Morning Star Lodge of the Order of Italian Sons and Daughters of America.\u00a0 The sauce comes together from pantry staples in the time it takes to bring the pasta water to a boil.<\/p>\n

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Morning Star Lodge is in Pittsburgh, about 70 miles from my hometown of Johnstown, PA.\u00a0 If you\u2019ve been following my blog, you know I have both Italian and Slovak roots.\u00a0 There are lots of people of Italian and Eastern European extraction in Western Pennsylvania.\u00a0 I found it interesting to peruse the pages of this ostensibly Italian cookbook.\u00a0 Among many Italian and Italian-American favorites are Eastern European dishes like holubki (stuffed cabbage), sweet sour kielbasa, and pierogi casserole.\u00a0 This speaks to the melting pot that is Western Pennsylvania!<\/p>\n

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If you\u2019ve gotten this far, I hope you\u2019re interested in trying this recipe but I fear there are many of you who hear the word anchovy and stop cold in your tracks.\u00a0 If any of you are still reading, however, I would encourage you to try this recipe.\u00a0 The anchovies provide a background savory note but really are not front and center!<\/p>\n

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If you have a favorite family recipe and a bit of a story to tell, please email me at santafecook@villasentieri.com<\/a> and we can discuss including it in the blog. I am expanding the scope of my blog to include traditional recipes from around the country and around the world. If you haven\u2019t seen Bertha\u2019s Flan<\/a> or Melinda\u2019s Drunken Prunes<\/a>, take a look.\u00a0 They will give you an idea of what I\u2019m looking for.<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

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Spaghettini con Acciughe (Spaghettini with Anchovies)<\/h2>\n
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Buy good quality anchovies packed in olive oil. The difference in price between low-end and high-end anchovies is not that much but the difference in taste is astounding. Good anchovies will have only the slightest smell \u201cof the sea\u201d when you open the can. After cooking, they will fade into the background leaving a savory (umami) note without any fishiness. Italians rarely use cheese in dishes that contain fish. I prefer spaghettini in this dish. Spaghettini is thinner than spaghetti but thicker than angel hair (vermicelli).<\/div>\n
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Prep Time <\/span>15 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Cook Time <\/span>40 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div>
Total Time <\/span>55 minutes<\/span><\/span> mins<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div>\n
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Servings: <\/span>4<\/span> people<\/span><\/span><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Ingredients
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