Spaghetti with Spicy Red Pepper & Garlic Clam Sauce

This Spaghetti with Spicy Red Pepper & Garlic Clam Sauce is a great summer pasta – light, inviting, invoking,  and flavorful. Yum!

I lovvve summertime, but I never want to lose out on amazing pasta dishes that can be heavy in the hot weather.

I’m married to (the most wonderful) Italian, and it’s just not heard of to give up on pasta.  Oh no, no, nooooo…  I might be disowned from the family.

And, this is one pasta where you don’t have to give up anything.

Not the glorious hot weather, not the smooth, rich, comforting pasta, nor the inviting ambience and gather-the-family-around-the-table feel that a good Italian meal brings.

Yes, it’s all that and a bowl of pasta.

Light, inviting, invoking, flavorful pasta.

Perfect for a hot summer day, a glass of Chianti and a loaf of warm, crunchy bread for dipping into the tomato-y, spicy red pepper, caper filled clam sauce.

Enjoy!

Print Recipe

Spaghetti with Spicy Red Pepper & Garlic Clam Sauce

Delicious, spicy red pepper and clam spaghetti, great for a summer pasta dish!

Prep Time10 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Total Time25 mins

Course: Main

Servings: 4

Author: Kristi

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 - 10 garlic cloves coarsely chopped (see note)
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons red pepper flakes see note
• 1 14.5 ounce can petite diced tomatoes, undrained with juice
• 1 10 ounce can Fancy Whole Baby Clams, drained, reserve, and set aside
• 1 6.5 ounce can chopped clams, drained, reserve, and set aside
• 2 tablespoons capers
• 6 slices bacon cooked and coarsely chopped
• 5 basil leaves julienned
• 2 tablespoons green onion chopped

Instructions

• Cook spaghetti per the package instructions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water, then drain the remaining water, setting pasta aside.
• In a large skillet, heat oil on medium-high until hot. Turn heat down to medium and add garlic, oregano and red pepper flakes, cooking until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
• Stir in tomatoes (undrained) and the reserved clam juice. Bring to a simmer and cook until sauce is slightly thickened, about 7 minutes. Reduce heat to low.
• Stir in clams, bacon, basil and capers and cook until heated through. Add 1/2 to 1 cup of reserved pasta water and pasta to the sauce. Cook over low heat, tossing pasta with the sauce until the pasta has absorbed some of the sauce and is well coated, about 2-3 minutes.
• Divide among 4 bowls, top with green onions and serve.

Notes

This recipe calls for 4-10 garlic cloves. Garlic clove size varies drastically (from giant to very small), so coarsely chop your garlic to taste. In this recipe, I used 9 garlic cloves (but remember, we're an Italian family and garlic is a staple!) and we used a mix of large, medium and small garlic cloves, which essentially came out to roughly 2 tablespoons.
Also, (need I mention the Italian thing again?), we love spicy, so we use 2 teaspoons of red pepper flakes, which will leave this spicy dish 'sitting' on your tongue - which we love. You may not, so please spice as you prefer!

Spaghetti with Spicy Red Pepper & Garlic Clam Sauce