Last night, after a long day on the road, I wanted to eat something flavorful, comforting, and easy to make. We had a big lunch in Albany, so this meal didn’t have to be a five-course meal, just something to put in our bellies before bed.
I’ve been making Spaghetti and Sand for at least 32 years. We lived off of it the first couple of years of our marriage because we were broke! We also ate a lot of oatmeal.
When we moved to Vermont from NJ in 1989, I took a job making $5.05 an hour. That was a huge money loss after working in NYC & NJ, but worth the peace & quiet plus the nicest thing of all…no traffic.
I’m not sure when I first learned about Spaghetti and Sand, but I’m sure it came from one of my Italian coworkers at work in NYC or NJ. It doesn’t matter…forgetaboutit!
I researched the dish and was surprised to find that it’s known to Italians in Italy and here in the US as St. Joseph’s Spaghetti or Spaghetti & Sawdust. Have you made the connection yet? St. Joseph was a carpenter and is the patron saint of Sicily, where there the dish originated. It’s pretty clever calling the breadcrumbs sawdust; it’s brilliant! Thanks are given to St. Joseph on March 19 for preventing a famine in Sicily during the middle ages and his role as Jesus’ father on earth.
I wrote a blog post back on March 19, all about St. Joseph’s Day cream puff. (You can read the post by clicking on the underlined blog post.) I found out that Spaghetti & Sand, aka St. Joseph’s Spaghetti, are traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve and St. Joseph’s feast day. Shit, I wish I knew this sooner. I know what I’ll be making for dinner on 3/19 to go with our cream puffs.
Spaghetti and Sand is a peasant food dish. Peasant food doesn’t always have to be categorized as cheap food but food using humble, simple, high-quality ingredients.
St. Joseph’s Spaghetti can go from a rags to riches dish with just a few additional meager ingredients such as anchovies, crushed red pepper, lemon, freshly chopped parsley, parmesan cheese, or fresh clams.
My version of Spaghetti & Sand is straightforward, using just a few ingredients. Most recipes include frying the garlic in olive oil; I poach mine for a clean and not bitter garlic flavor. I use both butter and olive oil as opposed to just olive oil.
I add a small amount of pasta cooking water to the dish before I add the breadcrumbs. I toast my breadcrumbs in a dry skillet and not in the oven as some cooks do.
I use a decent gluten-free spaghetti that works perfectly if you eat it the second it comes out of the sauté pan; if not, the spaghetti will break into pieces resembling something like rice. Forget about leftovers; the spaghetti can’t handle it; it will be a mushy mess the next day.
Adding freshly grated parmesan cheese is optional for the dish. Marty piles it on, and I eat mine without. It’s a personal preference.
Why don’t I use our spätzle instead of spaghetti for the dish? I guess it could be called Spätzle and Sand, but sometimes a gal just wants to twirl some spaghetti with a fork and spoon before shoving it into her mouth. As far as mushy leftovers? There aren’t any leftovers. Ever.
I hope you consider trying Spaghetti & Sand for yourself, and it becomes one of those go-to dishes when you don’t feel like making an extravagant meal or have any meat in the house. Bon Appetito!
Spaghetti & Sand
Ingredients
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp butter
4 cloves of garlic finely minced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 lb or box of spaghetti (I use a 12 oz box of Schar gluten-free spaghetti)
1/2 cup cooking liquid from the spaghetti
1 1/2 cups dried Italian breadcrumbs (I use 4C gluten-free Italian breadcrumbs)
Kosher salt and pepper to taste
Freshly grated parmesan top each dish (Optional)
Directions
In a large skillet, over low heat, heat the olive oil and butter. After the butter has melted, add the minced garlic and oregano. Slowly poach, not fry the garlic until it becomes soft. Turn off the heat.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the spaghetti and cook until al dente.
While the spaghetti is cooking, place the dried breadcrumbs into a dry skillet. Toast the breadcrumbs over medium-low heat for 3-5 minutes, constantly watching, so the breadcrumbs don’t burn. Set aside.
Drain the spaghetti reserving 1/2 cup of pasta water. Reheat the garlic and oil over medium heat. Add the drained pasta to the garlic oil. Stir to combine. Add 1/2 cup cooking water to the spaghetti again, mixing well. Add the toasted breadcrumbs to the pan. Stir to combine—season with kosher salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately into a large serving dish or individual bowls. Top with freshly grated parmesan cheese if desired.
Absolutely making this tomorrow! Have you tried the Tinkiyada brand of pasta? Their brown rice spaghetti holds up so much better than most and doesn’t break or fall apart like the others, even the next day. And their funny little twirly elbows and penne pasta are great too. X
I was just thinking of this and asked my sisters if anyone had a receipe from our grandmothers who always made it on St Josephs day. Unfortunately, my grandmothers passed away years ago, my mom now has dementia and my aunt recently passed away so I guess they took it to the grave 🙁 I shall try this version!