Bucatini with "Arriminati" Cauliflower - sweet & savoury Sicilian Pasta
This is for the ones who love blending flavours that, oddly, are perfect together.
Bucatini with "Arriminati" Cauliflower is a classic from Palermo, a pasta with a sauce of cauliflower, capers, raisins, tomato paste and pine nuts. This Pasta represents the blend of Italian and Arabic flavours typical of Sicilian traditional meals.
This recipe comes from Trattoria Don Ciccio in Bagheria, Palermo.
This recipe makes 4 portions of Bucatini Arriminati.
This recipe is fully vegan.
It takes about 30 minutes to prepare.
Want to explore other Italian recipes? Check our fresh pasta workshops!
INGREDIENTS:
750 grams bucatini
2 kilograms cauliflower (Sicilian "broccoli")
1 onion
250 grams double-concentrated tomato paste
50 grams raisins
50 grams pine nuts (or almonds)
50 grams salted capers
60 grams toasted breadcrumbs
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 teaspoons salt
chili flakes (peperoncino)
a handful of black olives
THE RECIPE:
Boil the cauliflower: Clean 2 kilograms cauliflower (Sicilian "broccoli"), cut the flours and boil in lightly salted water for 2 minutes.
Prepare the capers: Rinse 50 grams salted capers well under running water to remove the salt, then chop them roughly.
Soften the onion: Peel and thinly slice 1 onion, then fry it gently in extra virgin olive oil until soft and golden.
Build the sauce: Add the capers to the onions and cook for a minute, then add 50 grams raisins, 50 grams pine nuts, 250 grams double-concentrated tomato paste and chili flakes (peperoncino). Loosen with a a spoon of hot water if it's too thick.
Add the cauliflower: Drain the cauliflower, saving its cooking water (we will cook the pasta in it). Add it to the sauce with a spoon of cooking water and mash it with a fork so it 'catches' the sauce (that's what "arriminati" means). Taste and adjust with salt.
Cook the pasta: Cook 750 grams bucatini in the reserved cauliflower water (after seasoning the water) until al dente.
Toss and serve: Drain the bucatini and drop them in a pan with some spoons of the sauce. Transfer to a serving bowl, add the rest of the sauce on top of the pasta, sprinkle with 60 grams toasted breadcrumbs and serve.
MACCHÈ TIPS:
This pasta is a perfect balance between sweet and savoury, and I love to add some umami flavour to it.
When chopping the capers, add a spoonful of black olives in the mix and fry them too.
Olives are perfect to balance out flavours and bring an earthy touch to pasta dishes.
