This is my parents’ favorite dish. We still make it very often—in fact, even more frequently now that my father has passed away, as it reminds us of him. It might resemble the famous Sicilian dish made with sardines and wild fennel; however, given how hard it is to find sardines and wild fennel in Rome, we use anchovies instead, finishing the dish with parsley and plenty of Pecorino cheese.

Spaghetti with Anchovies and Almonds

  • Preparation time: 20 minutes
  • For 4 servings
  • Difficulty: Easy recipe

  • Ingredients
  • 320 grams of spaghetti
  • 500 grams of anchovies, cleaned and filleted
  • 40 grams of sliced ​​almonds
  • 2 tablespoons breadcrumbs
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • Grated Pecorino cheese (to taste)
  • Extra virgin olive oil (to taste)
  • Chopped parsley (to taste)
  1. Instructions
  2. Bring a pot of water to a boil for the pasta.
  3. In a small non-stick pan with oil, toast the almonds and breadcrumbs until they turn a lovely golden-brown (hazelnut) color.
  4. Season the boiling pasta water with coarse salt—about 7g per liter of water—and add the spaghetti.
  5. In a separate pan, cook the anchovies for a few minutes with oil, a garlic clove, and a small piece of chili pepper.
  6. Drain the spaghetti while still “al dente” and toss it in the pan with the anchovies; add some of the hot pasta water if the sauce seems too dry.
  7. Top the spaghetti with the toasted breadcrumb and almond mixture and the chopped parsley. Serve with grated Pecorino cheese.

Tips to ensure the success of the dish:

  • Use stale rustic bread instead of store-bought breadcrumbs. Toast it in the pan until golden, but be careful never to burn it.
  •  When cooking pasta with a seafood sauce, it is best to use less salt in the cooking water and adjust the seasoning, if necessary.
  •  For ideal pasta cooking, allow 1 liter of water for every 100grams of pasta.

mamma and dad