Food Recipes Salads Pasta Salads Warm Puttanesca Pasta Salad 1 Review Cherry tomatoes are the star of this vibrant dish, which also includes crispy prosciutto, fragrant herbs, anchovies, and punches of garlic. By Ann Taylor Pittman Ann Taylor Pittman For 20 years, Ann Taylor Pittman built a career of creating healthy recipes at Cooking Light magazine, where she most recently served as Executive Editor. She is the recipient of two James Beard Foundation Awards: a feature writing award for "Mississippi Chinese Lady Goes Home to Korea" and a cookbook award for The New Way to Cook Light. She is now a freelancer specializing in recipe development, writing, and video. Ann lives in Birmingham, Alabama, with her husband, their 13-year-old twin boys, one big dog, and one little dog. Food & Wine's Editorial Guidelines Updated on July 6, 2023 Save Rate PRINT Share Active Time: 30 mins Total Time: 30 mins Yield: 4 Jump to recipe I am impatient. This not-so-great quality of mine rears up when I have to wait for someone to show up to a meeting, when I agonize over how long it takes my children to exit the car when we're out running errands, and when I have to wait for truly awesome summer tomatoes to finally show up at the farmers market. Sure, there are so-called early varieties that pop up in May, but they never scratch the itch. They're just not juicy, tangy, or sweet enough. So as I impatiently wait for peak-season 'maters, I'll force things along to get my fix. In this warm pasta salad, I coax out summery flavor from cherry tomatoes, which are reliably sweet year-round. I salt them to draw out some juices, add red wine vinegar for more tang, and let them hang out in a bath of olive oil, shallots, and garlic. After about 20 minutes, a little pool of delicious tomato juices covers the bottom of the bowl. I use this liquid, plus a little pasta water, to finish and coat just-cooked casarecce pasta. (I love that shape, but you could use any short shape you like; I've also made this with trofie, rigatoni, and cavatappi.) And that's when all the fun puttanesca ingredients come into play. Anchovies are a necessity, giving the pasta a savory depth that you'd miss if you skipped them. (So please don't!) I go for a generous handful of Castelvetrano olives; I love their buttery flavor, meaty texture, and lovely green color. A couple tablespoons of petite capers pull their weight, lending an unmistakable briny goodness. Fresh oregano, earthy and savory, and basil, bright and slightly sweet, round out the flavors. The finishing touch comes in the form of crunchy, salty pork. Prosciutto is crisped in the microwave (a quick hack that works surprisingly well) and crumbled over the pasta. No worries if you don't have a microwave: You can crisp the prosciutto in the oven (on a parchment-lined pan at 350°F for about 15 minutes). The finished dish is fresh, super-flavorful, good warm or at room temperature (with a glass of rosé), and perfect for a deck or patio dinner. — Ann Taylor Pittman Cook Mode (Keep screen awake) Ingredients 1 pound cherry tomatoes, halved 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 1/4 cup minced shallot (from 1 medium shallot) 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 1 large garlic clove, grated 12 ounces uncooked casarecce pasta 4 (1/2-ounce) prosciutto slices 3 oil-packed anchovies, finely chopped 1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil 1/2 cup coarsely chopped Castelvetrano olives 2 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano 2 tablespoons drained nonpareil capers Fresh basil leaves, for garnish 1/2 teaspoon cracked black pepper, for garnish (optional) Directions Place tomatoes in a medium bowl; sprinkle with salt and ground pepper, and toss to combine. Add shallot, oil, vinegar, and garlic; toss well. Let stand at room temperature at least 20 minutes. Meanwhile, cook pasta in salted water according to package directions. Reserve 1 cup cooking liquid; drain pasta. Place 2 prosciutto slices on paper towels on a microwave-safe plate. Microwave on HIGH until crisp, 1 minute and 30 seconds to 2 minutes. Repeat with remaining 2 prosciutto slices. Drain tomato mixture over a bowl, reserving liquid. Combine warm pasta, anchovies, tomato liquid, and 1/3 cup cooking liquid in a large skillet over medium-high. Cook until sauce slightly thickens and coats pasta, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in drained tomato mixture, sliced basil, olives, oregano, and capers. Crumble prosciutto over pasta; garnish with basil leaves and, if desired, cracked pepper. Victor Protasio Rate It Print