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Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes, Garlic and Basil
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Pasta with Roasted Tomatoes, Garlic and Basil

Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 2 servings
Author: Roz Corieri Paige

Ingredients

Roasted Cherry Tomatoes

  • 4 cups cherry tomatoes preferably freshly-picked from the garden
  • 5 -7 large garlic cloves; 2 slices minced and 4 -5 cloves SLICED, and set aside to be used later in the sauce
  • 2 -3 Tbsp. olive oil
  • freshly-cracked sea salt
  • Thin Spaghetti/Spaghettiini half of a box for two servings
  • Tall pot of boiling water
  • Freshly-cracked sea salt
  • SAVE some of the pasta water
  • Thin Spaghetti/Spaghettiini half of a box for two servings
  • Tall pot of boiling water
  • Freshly-cracked sea salt

Tomato Sauce

  • Roasted tomatoes from above
  • 3 Tbsp. olive oil
  • 4 -5 garlic cloves sliced (that was set aside from above)
  • ½ cup freshly-grated Parmesan Parmiggiano cheese
  • 2 cups freshly-picked basil leaves
  • sugar if the tomatoes are too tangy for you.....careful, sprinkle on only to the point of taking any tang out of them.
  • Freshly-cracked sea salt and black pepper to taste

Garnish

  • ½ - 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan Parmiggiano cheese (to your taste preference)

Instructions

Roasting the tomatoes:

  • In a 450 degree oven, roast cherry tomatoes in olive oil and minced garlic until slightly browned and squished (keep an eye on this process).
  • Remove from oven and either use immediately or refrigerate for no more than 2 days.

Sauce:

  • In a large heavy pan, pour the olive oil and heat on medium-hot heat, and never on a hot setting (olive oil burns easily).
  • Add the slices of garlic and cook briefly until golden . . . making sure that the garlic does not burn.
  • Add the roasted tomatoes.
  • Add freshly-grated parmesan cheese, about a handful or ½ cup.
  • Add freshly-cracked sea salt to taste.
  • Simmer on low heat while pasta cooks.

Pasta:

  • In a tall pot, boil water with about 2 Tbsp. sea salt.
  • Add thin spaghetti (spaghettini) noodles and cook until 'al dente', no more than 7 minutes.
  • Do not throw away the pasta water!
  • With a hand-held strainer, remove the pasta from the water, tapping against the side of the pan, and place in the roasted tomato-garlic-Parmesan sauce.

After Cooking the Pasta:

  • Add adding the pasta to the tomato-garlic sauce, add some of the hot pasta water (½ cup or so) to the tomato-garlic sauce and pasta to help 'cream' it.
  • Add more grated Parmesan cheese (about 1 cup).
  • Add freshly-picked basil leaves (about 1 cup).
  • Blend gently.
  • Salt and pepper according to your taste preferences.
  • Add more Parmesan cheese to your taste preferences.

For Meat-Lovers:

  • Prepare ahead of time, your favorite Italian meatballs or purchased high-quality pre-made frozen Italian meatballs.
  • Heat meatballs and immediately add to the sauce mixture while the pasta is cooking.

Notes

If you find that the fresh taste of garden-fresh-picked tomatoes is a bit too tart for your preference, add a little bit of sugar at a time to take this to a better flavor for you....this is why many Italian cooks often add shredded carrots to their sauces . . . to sweeten and balance some of the tartness of the tomatoes.
AGAIN: this is totally up to you and your taste preferences.
My tomatoes needed about a teaspoon of sugar added this year; but I like the tartness and that's just me.
Serve with delicious garlic bread and a nice mixed greens salad!