Spaghettini with Tomato Basil Sauce

Anyone who knows me knows I am an anglophile and that I had a total dream-come-true moment when I went to England last year. I just lost myself in the magic of London. I indulged in one of my all time obsessions by going all by myself to Hampton Court Palace and immersing myself in the history of King Henry the VIIIth. Oh man I get giddy thinking about it. Look at that beauty...!

Now that England has been crossed off my vacay locations, the thought of Italy is slowly causing me to have Liz Lemon-esque *I want to go to there* moments. And who doesn't LOVE Italian food..! Soon after our wedding, my then-Italian-food-novice husband took to it like no other cuisine and I have been in culinary heaven since.

Ever since the cooking bug bit me, I have been trying to recreate easy Italian dishes that we eat in restaurants. My absolute favorite pasta dish at the moment is California Pizza Kitchen's Tomato Basil Spaghettini. It is an amazing dish - its lovely basil flavour and the creamy goat cheese is beauty on a plate.

Good food makes me happy.

Sure enough I was soon tempted to try making it at home with my own little twists and I'm happy to say it came out quite well! Not to mention, SO easy!! Now i must confess that this doesn't taste exactly like the CPK version because I have made this a little spicier than the original, among other things.

Ingredients:

1 of a box of Spaghettini

5 Tomatoes on the vine (or just any juicy large tomato)

1/2 cup fresh basil leaves

5-6 pods of Garlic

1 tbsp dried oregano

1/2 tbsp red pepper flakes

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp crumbled Goat cheese

Salt and Pepper as needed

Olive Oil as needed

This recipe serves 2

1. Prepare the pasta al dente as instructed on the box. Be sure to salt the boiling water generously.
2. Blanch the 5 tomatoes. Click here for instructions on blanching. Chop up the blanched tomatoes into small cubes and mash them until it looks like a bowl of chunky tomato juice. Slice the garlic pods into thin slivers. Give the basil a rough chop as well.
3. Heat some olive oil in a big pan and lightly fry the garlic. Keep an eye on it as garlic burns very easily. Pour in the chunky mashed up tomatoes, half of the chopped basil, salt, fresh ground pepper and bring to a slight simmer. Keep stirring this occasionally and continue to simmer until the tomato cooks and loses its raw flavour. This could take about 10 minutes and really allows the basil flavour to seep into the sauce. 
4. Add in the oregano, red pepper flakes and  Parmesan cheese. Simmer for another 2 minutes then toss in the pasta. Fold the sauce well into the pasta. Turn the heat very low and keep folding until it is well combined. Add the remaining chopped basil and mix well.

Serve topped with crumbled goat cheese and a side of crusty garlic bread. Mmm Delizioso!