September 28 – October 4, 2026

Monday:                  Leftovers with Herbed Goat Cheese Tapas

Tuesday: Pasta Pomodoro a la Plancha

Wednesday:          Acton Institute Dinner – good food at the D.C. + macaroons

Thursday:                Jumbalaya

Saturday:                Chicago Style Tavern Pizza

Sunday:                   Roast Chicken w/ Onions and Potatoes w/ Arugula & Lemon

Pasta Pomodoro a la Plancha

I prefer punchy, slightly humorous titles for my weekly posts, but a recipe in a foreign language, though clearly pretentious, is my occasional fall- back.  ‘Pasta Pomodoro a la Plancha’ means something like ‘Grilled Tomato Sauce.’  

The recipe for pasta sauce that we’re sharing this week is so different from what I’m used to cooking that, although it caught my eye, I quickly forgot about it.  I have learned to cook pasta with vegetable sauces, with seafood, with raw tomatoes, with a good ragu, with ricotta or burrata or just a bit of grated cheese and pasta water to coat the noodles, but grilling the delicate-skinned tomato didn’t seem to make sense.

Here is how I finally got around to doing it:

The weather in Pittsburgh has been spectacular recently, and I don’t enjoy cooking in a hot kitchen, so we’ve been going through charcoal like Donald Trump goes through hair dye and make-up.  And when I came across this odd tomato recipe again, I thought, “what the heck?”  In fact, in my retirement, I find myself in “what the heck” mode almost continuously.  I think “What the heck?” when SWMBO (She Who Must Be Obeyed) scolds me, or when I’m held up in traffic, or when I touch the screen of my i-Phone and find that I have agreed to rent a VRBO property in Akron, or when the streaming service I finally gave in to and paid for seems to have misplaced the series I have been watching for several episodes, or . . . but I digress.

Back to that pasta sauce.  You probably think that Pittsburgh is not Tuscany, and you are correct, but in fine fall weather, it’s even more verdant and when I cook outdoors, I can lift my gaze from the grill to look into the Oak, Maple and Wild Cherry woods behind the house, with a cold martini in hand.  This is a great privilege and a blessing.  And last week I used that most scenic of grills to blister some beefsteak tomatoes which we turned into a quick pasta sauce with the addition of a little pecorino, pasta water, garlic and basil. 

No matter where you live, but especially if you’re living in Tuscany, when your paisanos come home from a long day toiling in the fields looking for a good, substantial meal, serve them this pasta with some crusty bread and a nice, earthy wine, and they will thank you and break into song before arguing about soccer and passing out.

Pasta Pomodoro a la Plancha (adapted from bon appétit, Summer 2026)

Timing:                   

About 40 minutes plus the time it takes to get your grill to medium-high, if you cook the tomatoes first, then the pasta.

Ingredients:

3 lb. large tomatoes (beefsteak is best here, but heirloom will work), halved and cored.  Note: I would remove the cores, if needed, after the grilling.  Doing so beforehand will cause more of the tomato skin to stick to the grates.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus some for drizzling on the pasta

1 teaspoon Kosher salt – more to taste

4 garlic cloves, finely grated – we used garlic powder

1 tablespoon sugar (don’t skip this ingredient)

1 teaspoon red pepper flakes

½ cup finely chopped basil, plus some whole leaves for serving

12 oz. mezzi rigatoni or other short pasta

4 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces

Finely grated Parmesan for serving

Prep:

Prepare a grill for medium-high.  We use charcoal and it takes maybe 20 minutes to bring an entire chimney of brickettes to the right point – less, if you’re not using a full chimney.

Wash, dry and cut the tomatoes (see note in ingredient list)

Place the tomatoes in a large, heatproof bowl and drizzle with the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and toss to combine.

Gather the rest of the ingredients and cut up the butter and grate the parmesan.  You can chop the basil after you’ve cooked the pasta.

Cook:

Oil the grill grates well, then arrange the tomatoes, skin side down, on the grates and grill until deeply charred underneath – about 15 minutes.  Do not move the tomatoes during this time.

Use a fish spatula to remove the tomatoes from the grill and transfer back to the bowl you tossed them in.

Use a potato masher, or your hands, to smash the tomatoes until you have the texture of a chunky marinara.  You should be able to remove any tough cores that remain at this point, if you took my advice and didn’t core the tomatoes before tossing.

Mix in the garlic, sugar, red pepper flakes and ½ cup of chopped basil.

Meanwhile, cook the pasta in a pot of boiling salted water, stirring occasionally so that they don’t stick, until al dente.  Save a few ladlesful of the pasta water and drain the pasta.

Add the pasta to the tomato sauce and toss to coat.  Taste and correct the seasoning.  Add butter and mix until melted and sauce thickens slightly.  If you want a looser sauce, add some of the pasta water.

Divide the pasta into warmed bowls and top with basil leaves and grated cheese.