Pasta with Roasted-Tomato Meat Sauce

Unlike most in my family, I'm a big fan of spaghetti and when I saw this recipe that included anchovies in the sauce I was all over this dish and couldn't wait to make it.  One of our favorite side dishes is my Mother-In-Law's Caesar salad, which most Caesar dressings include anchovies.  Sara's salad would be a fabulous accompaniment to this recipe along with some good, crusty bread.  Over the years everyone in our family has acquired a taste for and gained a great appreciation of anchovies...they're salty additions of true goodness.  The anchovies don't lend a fishy taste like most people think, but rather are an element to season the sauce in addition to using salt.  This recipe was a very easy, authentic Italian dish to prepare and will be a dish I will make again soon. 


1 pint cherry tomatoes 
8 oz uncooked spaghetti 
2 tsp unsalted butter 
9 oz 80% lean ground pork (I used Jimmy Dean's Hot Pork Sausage)
1 TBSP minced garlic
1 cup yellow onion, chopped
1/2 tsp kosher salt (I didn't add because I used salted butter)
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper (I didn't use as much because the sausage I used was spicy)
3 canned anchovy fillets in oil, drained and chopped
1/4 cup dry sherry
1 1/2 TBSP balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
grated parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400°.

Place cherry tomatoes on a jelly-roll pan. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until tomatoes are lightly browned.  Crush the roasted tomatoes well.

Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat.

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pork, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, and anchovies to pan; cook 4 minutes or until pork is browned, stirring to crumble. Add sherry to pan; cook 30 seconds, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add crushed tomatoes and vinegar; cook 2 minutes or until tomatoes release their liquid and sauce is slightly thickened. Combine pasta and sauce in a large bowl; toss to coat. Sprinkle with basil and parmesan cheese.

This recipe was adapted from Adam Hickman, Cooking Light 
OCTOBER 2013