Salina-style Spaghettini With Cherry Tomatoes

Total Time: 40 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• Servings: 4
• 5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 6 dozen small ripe cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
• 1 lb dried spaghettini or 1 lb angel hair pasta
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
• 1 1/4 cups freshly grated ricotta infornata or 1 1/4 cups ricotta salata

Recipe

• 1 bring a large pot of water to a boil.
• 2 add olive oil and cherry tomatoes to a large straight-sided saute pan.
• 3 sprinkle with cayenne; warm over medium heat until tomatoes begin to give off some of their juice, shaking the pan every so often.
• 4 meanwhile, salt the boiling water in the pot; add in the spaghettini; cook, stirring often, until al dente; drain, reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking water.
• 5 transfer the pasta to the saute pan; add in garlic and toss with the tomatoes.
• 6 add 1/3 cup reserved pasta water; toss over medium heat until the water and oil emulsify.
• 7 add more water as necessary, a tablespoon at a time, until you have a nice creamy consistency and all the strands of spaghettini are well coated with sauce.
• 8 tear the mint leaves into small pieces and toss with the spaghettini.
• 9 transfer to heated bowls and top with the cheese; serve immediately.