This is not the classic pesto recipe with adding sun-dried tomatoes. There are no nut meats here or grated Pecorino Romano cheese. This is an uncooked pasta dressing that comes from Sicilian peasantry. The addition of toasted breadcrumbs is the alternative to grated cheese when cheese was not readily available. Of course like all peasant cooking, the ingredients became a staple for certain dishes even when the more expensive ones were available.

I use an organic sundried tomato without the sulphur dioxide. These are preserved by sea salt. Also, these tomatoes are actually dried in the sun and not mechanically dehydrated. The brand I choose was Berrilys Sun-dried tomatoes. They are available on Amazon. I didn’t realize how much 5 pounds of sun-dried tomatoes were. When the package arrived I knew I had ordered too much. I packaged some away for both my sons and anyone else who passed by my house. If they come in smaller sizes, get them. Other than that the tomatoes were excellent. These tomatoes have to be soaked in boiling water for a half hour before using them. That helps soften them and get rid of some of the salt. It’s not necessary to add salt to this dish. You can use whatever sundried tomatoes you can get your hands on, just follow the sellers suggestion on how to prepare them before eating.

• 3 ounces of unhydrated sun-dried tomatoes, soaked in boiling water for 30 minutes
• 3 cloves of garlic
• A handful of fresh basil
• 1 teaspoon of Sicilian oregano (regular oregano will do as well)
• 1/8 – 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne pepper to taste
• 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs toasted in 1 tablespoon of olive oil
• 1/2 pound of spaghetti or linguini

Pictured are the sun-dried tomatoes, Sicilian oregano, garlic, cayenne pepper and fresh basil.

You can use a food processor to chop the ingredients but I prefer hand chopping, that adds more body to the dressing.

Chop the tomatoes, garlic, and basil until you have moderately fine paste.

Add that to a small bowl and mix in the olive oil, oregano and cayenne pepper. Mix well, add more olive oil if you think it is too dry. Set aside.

Heat a small frying pan over medium heat and add a tablespoon of olive oil. When the oil is hot add the breadcrumbs. Toss around until the breadcrumbs are lightly toasted. Don’t burn them. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Cook the spaghetti according to package directions in salted water. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water for later. Once the spaghetti is cooked, drain and return the pasta to the pot. Add the tomato mixture to the hot pasta and mix well. Add some pasta water if the spaghetti is too dry. A little moisture at the bottom is fine, the pasta will absorb it.

Plate the dish and serve with the the toasted breadcrumbs sprinkled on top.