This is a very old recipe. My mum has always called it white spaghetti just because it's not red spaghetti (tomato) and we pretty well had one or the other every night of the week when I was growing up. That was before the meat and salad. Anyway, it's basically anchovy and garlic but as a grown-up I add chilli and some chopped parsley if I've got any.
It is a genuine storecupboard classic.
Serves 2
200g spaghetti
2 - 3 tbsp olive oil
3 garlic cloves, thickly sliced
50g can anchovies in olive oil
dried chilli flakes
Cook the spaghetti in a very big pan of salted water. Meanwhile, heat the oil in the smallest saucepan you've got and gently cook the garlic slices until golden - don't let it get dark or the flavour will become bitter. Lift them out with a fork (I keep them but mum throws them out). Add the can of anchovies, including the oil to the pan and sizzle gently for a few minutes, whisking with a fork so the anchovies disintegrate. Add a couple of ladles of water from the pasta pan and simmer very gently until the pasta is done. Drain the pasta loosely and return to the pan. Add the white sauce, some chilli flakes, plenty of black pepper and the fried garlic, if you want. Toss well together and serve straightaway.
