Midnight Pasta
When Hunger Strikes Late
There's a stack of old Polaroids from university days — late night study sessions, friends gathered around tiny kitchen tables, the amber glow of a single overhead light. This pasta was our ritual, the thing you made when the library closed and hunger hit hard. The recipe came from someone's Italian grandmother, scribbled on the back of a photo from a family gathering in '76. Nothing fancy, nothing complicated. Just garlic, oil, chilli, and that particular kind of comfort that only comes from simple food made with your own hands when the world is quiet and the day is done.
Ingredients
- 100g spaghetti
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 red chilli, finely chopped
- 60ml extra virgin olive oil
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Parmesan cheese, grated
- Salt to taste
Method
- Bring a pot of salted water to boil. Cook spaghetti according to package directions until al dente.
- While pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a large frying pan over medium-low heat.
- Add sliced garlic to the oil and cook gently for 2-3 minutes until fragrant and just starting to turn golden. Don't let it brown.
- Add chopped chilli and cook for another 30 seconds.
- Reserve 1/2 cup pasta cooking water, then drain the spaghetti.
- Add the hot pasta directly to the pan with the garlic oil. Toss well, adding a splash of pasta water to create a light sauce.
- Remove from heat, toss through fresh parsley, and serve immediately with grated parmesan on top.
Nutrition Information (per serve)
520
Calories
15g
Protein
65g
Carbs
22g
Fat