St. John's Eve Pasta

This recipe comes courtesy of Mario Batali's cook book "Molto Italiano", but it varies slightly from his original recipe. This was the first time we made this pasta recipe and we think it came out pretty good, not to brag or anything. :)
This recipe seems like it has a lot of steps but its pretty simple and most of these ingredients you should have in your pantry.

Handful of sliced blanched almonds
1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
1 cup fresh or panko bread crumbs
3 salt packed anchovies, rinsed, and chopped
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/4 of an onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups basic tomato sauce (we made our own but you could use a good tomato sauce from the store)
7 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 package of fettucine or wide noodle like a papparadelle

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add 2 tablespoons of salt.
Meanwhile, in a large saute pan, gently toast the almonds in 1 tablespoon of olive oil, over medium heat until golden brown. Using a slotted spoon transfer the almonds to a plate. In the oil remaining in the pan, toast the bread crumbs, stirring until golden brown. Combine the bread crumbs and the almonds on the plate.
Add 2 tablespoons more olive oil to the pan and reduce the heat medium low. Stir in the anchovies and crush them in the olive oil with a fork. Add the anchovies and the oil to the bread crumb mixture and season with lots of black pepper.
Add 2 tablespoons to the pan and add the onion and garlic, cook gently until softened but not brown. Add the tomato sauce, bring to a simmer and cook until sauce has reduced about 1/3. Add the basil, remove from the heat and set aside.
Drop the pasta in the boiling water and cook until al dente. Drain the pasta and toss in the pan with the tomato sauce, add half the bread crumb mixture and mix well.
Transfer the pasta to a bowl and sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top. Serve immediately.