Bucatini with sardines

Serves: 6

Ingredients:

• 1 kg bucatini (like thick spaghetti)
• 1 kg fresh sardines
• 500 g fennel
• 5-6 filets anchovies
• 50 g roasted and cut up almonds
• 35 g raisins
• 35 g pine nuts
• 1 medium red onion
• 2 pinches saffron
• Breadcrumbs
• Salt
• Pepper

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Clean the fennel and boil in salted water, strain and conserve the cooking water for cooking the pasta. Clean the sardines and remove the head and spine. Sauté the chopped onions and the anchovies in a large pan (wide and deep); mash the anchovies with a fork until they almost melt. Add the raisins and pine nuts and a pinch of saffron before adding the chopped fennel, half the sardines and some fresh black pepper. Cook over a low heat, stirring from time to create a more or less smooth sauce. Check the salt in the fennel water, bring to the boil and cook the pasta. Before draining the pasta add a pinch of saffron; drain and mix with two thirds of the sauce. Pour into an oiled baking dish and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs. Heat up the remainder of the sauce, adding a little oil and the other half of the sardines, cover the pasta with the sauce and sprinkle with the almonds. Cook in the pre heated over for about ten minutes for the flavours to mingle.