Name: Pasta with Fennel Tomato Sauce
Ingredients: 1 lb Spaghetti; Olive oil; 2 ts Garlic; minced; 1/4 ts Crushed red pepper; 1 Fennel bulb (approx 1-1/2 cups); diced; 1 Crushed tomatoes; 1 Orange (zest only); Salt and pepper; 1/4 c Cream (optional); 1 Parsley; chopped

We [wrongly] feel that heaven is bearable, all right, when one has sucked dry all the pleasures of earth. We feel that, only after old age has come upon us, when life is a burden, when health has failed, when we are in the way and our children don't want us, then perhaps we should be resigned to go to Heaven. Subconsciously we look upon heaven as a scrapheap for the worn-out and useless, a kind of old people's home – better than nothing but not as good as this world, with youth, health and prosperity.

John Rice

CATEGORY	CUISINE	TAG	YIELD
Dairy	French	French, Pasta	4	Servings

INGREDIENTS

1	lb	Spaghetti
		Olive oil
2	ts	Garlic; minced
1/4	ts	Crushed red pepper
1		Fennel bulb (approx 1-1/2 cups); diced
1		Crushed tomatoes
1		Orange (zest only)
		Salt and pepper
1/4	c	Cream (optional)
1		Parsley; chopped

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Get a large pot of salted water going for the pasta.
2. Gently saute the onion in a little oil until it softens, then add the
garlic and crushed red peppers.  Cook another few minutes, but don't let
the garlic brown.
3. Add the fennel and stir.  Cover and sweat until the fennel softens,
about 10 minutes.
4. Add the tomatoes and orange zest.  Simmer uncovered for about 15
minutes, then salt and pepper to taste.  (If you're using cream, stir it in
after about 10 minutes, then let the sauce continue to simmer another 5
minutes or so.)
5. Give the sauce a 5 or 10 minute head start, then cook the pasta. When
it's done, drain and combine the pasta and sauce in the large pot. Stir to
coat the pasta evenly and let it cook a moment so the spaghetti absorbs a
little of the sauce.  Then dump it into a serving bowl, scatter parsley
over all, and serve.
Note on Fennel:  It's sometimes marketed as anise.  The bulb is the best
part.  Standard procrdure for fennel is to whack off the stalks, quarter
the bulb lengthwise and cut out the base like you would for cabbage. At
that point it's ready for slicing or dicing.
Having said the bulb is the best part, I should say that there's nothing
wrong with the stalks.  in fact, if you were stuck with a small bulb, you
can dice a stalk and use it in this recipe.  The major difference is that
the stalks are more fibrous, like celery.  Actually, the stalks are pretty
good to eat raw instead of celery (provided you like licorice).
Contributor:  Patricia Wells at Home in Provence Preparation Time: 45:00
Posted to MM-Recipes Digest  by Jack Elvis <jackelvis@moonlink.net> on Apr
26, 1998

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