Tis' the season

This weekend is my birthday, and I've asked MW (fiance) to take me strawberry picking. When I was little we used to drive to Butler's Orchard, and I have insanely fond memories of the experience. We always ended up with WAY too much fruit, and were already sick from all the strawberries we ate along the way. At the end of the day we'd celebrate with strawberry shakes or my mom's famous strawberry shortcake (yum!). This year, I thought something savory might be fun to try. Luckily, New York was thinking the same thing and printed this recipe in this week's edition!Sfoglia’s Spaghetti with Strawberries

1 pound good-quality dried spaghetti (like Setaro)

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for finishing

1 pound ripe strawberries, cleaned and halved

2 tablespoons good aged (eight-year-old) balsamic vinegar

1 cup San Marzano tomato purée4 ounces reserved pasta water

Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Cook the pasta in rapidly boiling salted water until al dente. (1) In a large sauté pan, warm the olive oil and half of the strawberries over medium heat. Cook until the strawberries start to release juice. Add balsamic and reduce by half. (2) Add tomato purée, the rest of the strawberries, and the reserved pasta water, and reduce by half again until the sauce thickens. Season to taste. (3) Toss with spaghetti. Finish with olive oil and black pepper.