Pasta allo scarpariello

To make your pasta allo scarpariello, start by heating a saucepan with water to cook the pasta. Once the water is boiling, add a little salt. Take the Datterino tomatoes, wash them and slice them in half 1, then take the long fresh chili pepper, trim it and open it up to remove the seeds 2, before slicing it into strips and chopping it 3.

Grate the Pecorino Romano 4 and Parmigiano Reggiano cheeses. Pour the extra virgin olive oil into a large pot and heat. Add the chopped chili and the whole peeled garlic so it will be easier to remove 5. Fry for around 3 minutes, stirring occasionally, then add the datterino tomatoes 6, and cook over medium heat for around 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, boil the spaghetti 7 until it is cooked al dente. Once the tomato sauce is ready, season with salt, remove the garlic 8, and add some of the basil leaves 9. Add a ladleful of cooking water to create a delicious creamy texture.

Drain the spaghetti, keeping a couple of ladlefuls of cooking water aside, and pour the pasta directly into the pot with the sauce 10. Finish cooking in the pan over medium-low heat, mixing the spaghetti into the sauce and adding cooking water 11 if necessary, so that the sauce is creamy. Turn off the heat and add the grated Pecorino Romano and Parmigiano Reggiano cheeses 12 in several stages, alternating them with more cooking water as needed

and stirring constantly so the cheese doesn’t go stringy 13. Flavor again with some basil leaves 14. Serve the pasta allo scarpariello immediately, adding more fresh basil to each plate 15.