Puttanesca has been my all-time favorite pasta sauce since I tasted it for the first time as a teenager. (I believe it was at Avellino's in Fairfield, CT.) I've tried several variations over the years, and this one is truest to the flavor and texture I remember from that first time. I realize that my approach is a little unorthodox--most puttanesca recipes call for the anchovies, garlic, and red pepper flakes to be sauteed in oil at the start of cooking. I prefer to start with a base of hot pepper, oregano, and capers, then add garlic. The aroma is absolutely intoxicating. The anchovy fillets, meanwhile, are mashed to a paste, whipped with softened butter, and added toward the end of cooking, right before tossing the sauce with pasta. As for the pasta itself, I use spaghetti (it all comes back to that memory), but other shapes, like penne, are just fine. The recipe calls for a pound, but you can get away with half a pound if you like your pasta really saucy.

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