I did it, I did it: a really fab Italian pasta

Not gonna lie, y'all, our trip home today was looong. After several hours, T had a serious yen for BBQ so we stopped at Wilson's, in Emporia, VA, just over the NC/VA line. Loved our waitress, the sweet tea and fries, but canned green beans are a sad excuse for a side. T said, "Well, you gotta just go for the meat," and maybe that was true, but still, I didn't want the meat. Why the 'Merica? Did they run out of As? I don't get it.

Afterwards, we all became rather peevish at the number of hours ahead, and at some point I looked behind me and saw this:

This was cute until Jack touched the styrofoam plank, a microscopic bit flaked off, Ol lost his business, cried his HUGE tears which coursed down his face, smeared his "beard" and rained brown water all over A) the styrofoam and B) his Wrenchie. I didn't mention what looked like poo stains on Wrenchie and fortunately, he never noticed. But the situation just didn't energize any of us, and the final three hours were a slow hell.

Finally, FINALLY, we were home, at which point T and I felt more tired than ever and, naturally, the boys woke up as if from a 24 hour slumber: jazzed to the nines. Together they ate five PB&Js and turned the bathwater a muddy shade once all the marker washed off. T gave them haircuts, I read stories and they were off.

I turned to dinner and a week empty fridge. We brought a bunch of tomatoes home with us and had some great bucatini in the pantry (how does that tiny hole get in the middle of each noodle??). My herb garden was monstrous, so pasta it was to be.

Now in general, I fail at pasta. I mean, it's always fine, but it's never Italian good. Like when my brother-in-law just whips up a lunchtime pasta while wearing a suit and it makes you want to cry it's so magnificently good. The pasta is both chewy but tender, starchy but not. The sauce slicks it completely but is also its own element. You feel insatiable regardless of how much you devour.

Tonight, I feel as if I touched the shores of Italian good.

This.was.awesome. I mean, it was literally outstanding. I may have licked the bowl. I slow cooked fresh tomatoes in olive oil with a quartered garlic clove, a peperoncino, saffron, a Pecorino heel, chives, parsley and basil. Plenty of salt, a dash of red pepper flakes, more Pecorino. I wish I had another vat because I would eat it right now.

Buona notte.