Rachael Ray Shares Her Favorite Pasta Recipe

A doggy bag from Rachael Ray sounds pretty good right about now, but for the rest of us, she’s shared one of her go-to pasta recipes that’ll make any home cook feel like a chef. Ray’s Tuscan-inspired Pici all’Aglione sounds fancy, but it’s remarkably easy to make using only a handful of pantry staples. “The recipe calls for a lot of thinly sliced garlic, cherry tomatoes, lots of fresh basil, good olive oil, salt, a little cheese, and you're done,” says Ray. “So it’s really one of those comforting dishes because it’s so easy to achieve. And because it’s so few ingredients.” Consider this a celebrity pasta recipe you’ll actually want to eat.

Rachael Ray’s Pici all’Aglione

Serves 4–6

INGREDIENTS

3 to 4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (as Ray dubbed it, EVOO)

2 tablespoons good-quality salted butter

7 to 8 cloves of garlic, sliced thin by hand or using a truffle shaver

About 8 cups cherry tomatoes, halved

Fine sea salt or kosher salt

A few leaves of basil, torn

500 grams pici or 1 pound bucatini or spaghetti

Grated pecorino and/or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Fresh parsley or mint, finely chopped

Optional: 1/2 red finger chili pepper, halved and seeds removed, for a spicy sauce

Chopped pistachios

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place a large pot of salted water on the stove and bring to a boil. If you are using pici, it will take about 20 minutes to cook at a rolling boil. If you are using other pasta, follow package directions but cook one minute less than directed.
2. While pasta is cooking, heat a large sauce pot or deep skillet over low heat with EVOO (three turns of the pan worth).
3. Melt the butter into the oil, add garlic, and stir for about 2 minutes. If using, add half a chili pepper to the garlic and then add tomatoes.
4. Season with salt, stir, and cover the pan to cook. Once the tomatoes are broken down, about 15 minutes, add the torn basil and continue cooking for about 10 minutes (24–30 minutes total).
5. Drain pasta, reserving about 1 cup of starchy cooking water, and add to the pot of sauce.
6. Add a few of handfuls of cheese while tossing pasta with tongs to emulsify.
7. Transfer pasta to serving bowls and top with additional toppings of choice.

Serve with simple green salad dressed with lemon and EVOO. For a heartier meal, serve with sliced steak and herbs.

In our column That Thing I Always Cook, women you admire—chefs, designers, actors, reality stars, influencers, and more—offer up the story behind their favorite recipe, along with how to make it yourself—something we could all use right about now. Read them all here.