“Main Dish†Laura O’Rourke took a group on a culinary tour of the Tuscany region of Italy. Their guide, Giacomo, was a “walking history book†as well as a fabulous cook. Laura got pretty talented at jotting down his verbally shared recipes on matchbooks, travel brochures and napkins. This one was written on a paper napkin in a little restaurant in the ancient town of San Gimignano. It’s simple and brings to mind many great memories when she prepares it.
Giacomo’s Baked Pasta Dish
- 3-4 onions, thinly sliced
- 6-8 ripe tomatoes (or 10-12 roma tomatoes), thinly sliced
- ½ to ¾ cup parmesan cheese
- 1 1/2 cups bread crumbs
- 1 Tablespoon dried oregano
- 4- 5 cloves garlic, minced
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1/2-3/4 cup olive oil
- 12 ounces bucatini pasta (or pasta of your choice), cooked al denté and drained
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a baking dish layer onions, then tomatoes. Sprinkle parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, oregano, garlic, salt and pepper over the top. Drizzle with olive oil and bake until dried but not burned, about 20 minutes. Remove from pan and chop coarsely. Transfer to a serving bowl and mix with the pasta. Serve cold, warm or hot.
Etc.
You can easily vary the amount of ingredients to suit your tastes. The better the quality of tomatoes, the tastier the finished dish.