Foodie Friday and a huge thank you-this one's for Michael

       It's Foodie Friday at Designs by Gollum and we want to say a very special thank you! Two weeks ago we were the VERY lucky winners of one of Michael's giveaways- the copper pan!!! YAY!!!

It came this week and after my husband pried it out of my arms, we went to work deciding on a way to use it for this Foodie Friday. 

Then I remembered something. 

That is an accomplishment in itself as it seems that lately I'm lucky I remember the names of my children

Though we have so many of them, that can be understandable

A couple of weeks ago, Michael commented on our Facebook Fan page with her memories of a wonderful morsel that she had enjoyed during a trip to Italy. She mentioned a small roasted tomato with herb-y crumbs that she had never been able to duplicate.

I won't even begin to pretend I can duplicate that particular delicacy, but it was a starting point. As it happens, I absolutely love roasted tomatoes with their smoky, caramelized sweetness and I have had several recipes that are favorites of mine. 

After some searching through my files, and just a bit of taste-testing (did you expect me NOT to?), we combined and played till we came up with this week's recipe. 

And because everything is better with pasta, we are serving our roasted mini tomatoes with thin spaghetti and a huge thank you to Michael. 

Spaghetti with Roasted Tomatoes

loosely adapted from Canal House Cooking, Nonna Norma, and Zia Annamaria

8 ounces diced pancetta (for today I used a mix of pancetta and prosciutto- it’s what I had)
A very good quality extra virgin olive oil- this will affect this dish
5 anchovy fillets
3 cup coarse fresh bread crumbs (my Italian bread in the food processor)
small Campari tomatoes- I used 3 packages (tops sliced off, seeds scooped out with a grapefruit spoon)
1 large head garlic, roasted in an oven till soft 

4 cloves garlic, pressed
handful fresh thyme, parsley, basil, and rosemary leaves, minced (I use my trusty mezzaluna!)
salt & pepper
1-1 1/2 pounds spaghetti

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Wrap the head of garlic in foil and roast till soft- about 40 minutes.  Saute the pancetta in a pan over medium heat until browned and crisp. Remove to a plate. Leave the rendered fat in the pan.  Add 4-5 tablespoons of the olive oil and the anchovies to the pan. Use a wooden spoon to stir and mash the anchovies until they dissolve. Add 1/2 the pressed garlic and saute for a minute, then add the bread crumbs and cook, stirring often, until they are golden. Season with salt and pepper Put the tomatoes, cut side up, in a baking dish sprayed with Pam. Take the roasted garlic and squeeze a bit into the cavities of each tomato. Mound some bread crumbs onto each tomato, pressing it down into the tomato and mounding just a little on top. Save the extra bread crumbs. Scatter  half the herbs on top. Drizzle about 1/4 cup of olive oil over all.  Roast the tomatoes in the oven until they have browned a bit but not collapsed. Depending on the size of the tomatoes, this can take anywhere from 30-60 minutes. These little guys took about 40 minutes. Remove the tomatoes from the baking dish and set aside. Do not clean out the baking dish!

Cook the spaghetti in a large pot of boiling salted water.  While the pasta cooks, gently heat about 1/4 cup (or a little more) of olive oil and saute the rest of the pressed garlic. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the pasta water. Return the pasta to the pot  Stir the juices and any bits of bread crumbs from the bottom of the tomato roasting dish into the pasta.  Add a little olive oil and the reserved pasta water and toss lightly over low heat till warmed.  Toss in the rest of the herbs, the pancetta and leftover bread crumbs

Pour the pasta into a serving bowl, place the tomatoes on top, sprinkle fresh Parmesan cheese over all and serve.

Is this pot wonderful or what?!

Yellow matelasse blanket used as table cover

Folded piece of fabric that I love under plate

Garlicky, herb-y, creamy, melt-in-your-mouth tomatoes 

As Always,

Buon Alimenti, Buon Amici,

 Molti Grazie Michael

Pattie and Allie