Dirty Martini Pasta - The flavors of the drink in a creamy sauce...

 

Dirty Martini Pasta -   This might sound strange but if you like the flavor of the drink, the brininess of olives, butter and garlic... you should love this!

This dish is about as simple as it comes, very few ingredients and it's one of the sauces that I call "while the pasta cooks", so you know it's quick cooking....

To make this dish, you'll need:

Your choice of pasta

1-2 Tbsp Olive Oil

1-3 Garlic Cloves, minced or pressed

5-8 Green Olives (Castelvetrano), smashed and chopped + brine

Lemon Zest, plus additional for topping

2 Tbsp Vodka or Gin

1-2 Tbsp Olive Brine

1-2 Tbsp Butter

Salt & Pepper to taste

Fresh Parsley, lightly chopped for topping

Blue Cheese crumbles, for topping (optional)

SAVE YOUR PASTA WATER

PREPARATION -

1-    First of all, put your pasta water to boil. Have your pasta ready to cook once the water boils. You can start finishing the dish once the pasta is done so you can transfer it directly from the pot to your pan. Be sure you've prepped all your ingredients since this comes together quickly.

2-    While you're water is boiling, take a good sized pan over medium heat. Add the garlic, for about a minute, followed by the olives and lemon zest. Saute it together until the garlic and lemon zest begin to get golden brown and the pan has lost some of its moisture, about 2 minutes.

3-    Deglaze the pan with the liquor, To do this you pour the liquor into the pan and you scrape the bottom of the pan to remove all the dark bits that remain on the bottom of the pan, this will add flavor to the dish plus will cause the alcohol to burn off and leave the flavor.

4-    To finish the sauce, now add the olive brine and 1 tbsp of butter. Now stir continuously so that the butter will emulsify the sauce (thicken and make it silky)

5-    If your pasta isn't ready yet, you can remove the pan from the heat so it doesn't continue cooking. If your pasta is ready then you can add your pasta directly from the pot into the sauce, mix continualy so it becomes well coated. Stir in a little more olive brine, taste to insure its to your taste. 

6-    If your sauce is too thin, add pasta water, a couple of tablespoons at a time, and stir well and you can repeat as needed to give you more sauce, it will also thicken it and give it a silky finish.

7-    To serve, sprinkle with more lemon zest, blue cheese crumbles and parsley. Enjoy!