Pasta con le Sarde

🥘 Ingredients

Sauce and Pasta

• anchovy fillets
  2 pieces
• fennel (with fronds)
  2 bulbs
• fennel seeds (ground)
  1 tbsp
• golden raisins (50g)
  1/3 c
• lemon
  1
• linguine
  450 g
• olive
• saffron
  1 pinch
• salt
• sardines (packed in olive oil)
  125 g can
• white wine
  1/3 c
• yellow onion
  1 large

Topping

• breadcrumbs (60g)
  1/2 c
• pine nuts (45g)
  1/3 c

Sauce and Pasta

1. 1

   Warm white wine in a small saucepan over medium heat until it just begins to steam. Remove from the heat, crumble in the saffron , and stir in the golden raisins . Let the mixture sit for ⏱️ 15 minutes to steep and plump the raisins.

   white wine: 1/3 c, saffron: 1 pinch, golden raisins: 1/3 c (50g)
2. 2

   Finely chop the fronds of the fennel and set them aside. Finely slice the bulb portion of the fennel and the yellow onion .

   fennel: 2 bulbs (with fronds), fennel, yellow onion: 1 large
3. 3

   Open the tin of sardines and pour the oil directly into a large skillet. Add extra olive oil as needed to completely coat the bottom of the pan. Set the sardine fillets aside.

   sardines: 125 g can (packed in olive oil), olive
4. 4

   Heat the oil over medium heat. Add the anchovy fillets and cook for ⏱️ 2 minutes , using a wooden spoon to mash them until they completely dissolve into the oil.

   anchovy fillets: 2 pieces
5. 5

   Add the diced fennel bulb and onion to the pan, along with fennel seeds . Cook, stirring frequently, until the vegetables are completely soft and translucent, which takes about ⏱️ 8 minutes . Do not brown them.

   fennel seeds: 1 tbsp (ground)
6. 6

   Pour the steeped wine, saffron, and raisins into the skillet with the vegetables. Add the juice of the lemon .

   lemon: 1
7. 7

   Gently fold in the reserved fillets from the sardines , breaking them up into large chunks. Lower the heat to medium-low and let the mixture simmer together for ⏱️ 10 minutes so the flavors fuse and the liquid reduces slightly. Season with salt to taste.

   sardines, salt
8. 8

   Meanwhile, bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a rolling boil. Add the linguine and cook according to the package instructions until it is just al dente, about ⏱️ 9 minutes .

   linguine: 450 g
9. 9

   Drain the pasta, reserving 1 cup of the starchy cooking water.
10. 10

    Transfer the cooked linguine directly into the large skillet with the sardine and fennel sauce. Toss vigorously over low heat for ⏱️ 1 minute to coat the strands. If the sauce is too thick, splash in a few tablespoons of the reserved pasta cooking water. Turn off the heat and fold in the reserved chopped fennel fronds.

    fennel

Topping

1. 1

   In a separate dry skillet set over medium heat, add the breadcrumbs and pine nuts . Cook, stirring constantly, for ⏱️ 4 minutes until the breadcrumbs are deeply golden brown and the pine nuts are fragrant. Immediately transfer to a small bowl so they do not burn.

   breadcrumbs: 1/2 c (60g), pine nuts: 1/3 c (45g)

Serving

1. 1

   Divide the pasta into bowls and top generously with the toasted breadcrumbs and pine nuts.