Fettucini With Tomatoes, Capers and Arugula

You do want to take advantage of summer's bounty of juicy farm fresh or garden fresh tomatoes for this bold and piquant recipe...you really do! I substituted fresh fettucini for spaghetti and added an artisan goat's milk cheese that the cheese steward convinced me to buy. From Italian Two Easy as served at London's River Cafe.

• Ready In: 20 mins
• Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 4  tomatoes
• 2  garlic cloves
• 1  teaspoon salt
• 1  dried hot red chili pepper, lightly roasted (your choice-Thai, japones, even chipotle etc.)
• 2  tablespoons capers
• 3  tablespoons  imported black olives
• 1  cup arugula leaf, chopped (also known as rocket)
• 3  tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 11  ounces fettuccine (I used fresh locally made pasta) or 11  ounces spaghetti (I used fresh locally made pasta)
• 3 -4  tablespoons  Cacio di Fossa cheese, grated (Parmesan, pecorino-romano, gorgonzola can be subbed) (optional)
•  olive oil, for drizzling
•  cracked black pepper

Directions

1. Lighlty roast the chili. Set aside to cool. Once cool, remove stem, seeds and devein. Crumble into small pieces.
2. Depending on their size, cut the tomatoes in half or quarters. Squeeze out the excess juice and seeds and then coarsely chop.
3. Peel the garlic and mash with 1 teaspoon of salt.
4. Pit the olives. Roughly chop the arugula.
5. Combine the tomatoes, garlic, chile, capers and olives in a bowl. Season generously with the olive oil. Set aside for 30 minutes.
6. Cook the pasta according to package directions in a pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain the pasta and stir into the tomato mixture.
7. Transfer the pasta mixture to a serving platter. Garnish with the arugula. Toss to distribute the ingredients. Season with cracked black pepper to taste.
8. Serve with olive oil on the side. Garnish with the freshly grated cheese if desired.
9. Omit the cheese for Vegan.